


Kill of the Night

by WolfBrigade



Category: Frozen (2013)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Anna and Kristoff are BAMFS, Elsa with Powers, F/F, Oblivious Anna, Roommates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-26
Updated: 2015-11-19
Packaged: 2018-02-10 13:36:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 95,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2027052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfBrigade/pseuds/WolfBrigade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Guild doesn't pay nearly enough money for the creatures Anna has to hunt down on the weekly basis. Seriously, it's like Arendelle's on top of a Hellmouth. So when she has to put out an ad for a roommate, all she wants is someone nice and normal. What she gets is the beautiful and awkward Elsa, who has a secret of her own.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Monsters Call It Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! As the tags have noted, this is a mix of a few different AUs. The creatures used in this story are taken from different cultures and time periods with no real rhyme or reason. I've hyperlinked their names in case you'd like to read up on them. The kickass cover art is by Jungie14295, you can find her other artwork _[here](http://jungie14295.tumblr.com/tagged/doodles)_ .

* * *

Anna tastes blood in her mouth. Dirt too, but she finds the blood to be a bit more disconcerting. If she swallows any more of it, she knows it'll come back up in an extremely unpleasant way. So she spits out a mouthful, the spray a blinding red against the snow-covered ground.

God, this was supposed to be her day off. Her new roommate was moving in today and she wanted to be there to greet her, maybe even help her unpack. They could have ordered pizza and gotten to know each other.

But no—some goddamn _[ahool](http://cryptidz.wikia.com/wiki/Ahool) _ of all things had to start trouble. It wasn't enough for him to just stick to a vegetarian diet like all of his other man-sized bat brethren. No, he decided that he wanted to be a vampire bat, using the citizens of Arendelle (a town which already has a _mysteriously_ high mortality rate) as his personal juice boxes.

Anna got the page informing her that the ahool is no longer fit for this world and she's just spent the last two hours hauling ass through the forest, switching between chasing and being chased by a giant, psychotic creature with a severe case of bloodlust.

The ahool swoops down only a few feet away from her, sniffing curiously at a red patch of snow at its feet before a long, thin tongue darts out to taste it. Anna can practically _feel_ the rumble of approval that rips through the creature.

"So," Anna pants, getting up as quickly as her bruised ribs and talon-slashed arms will allow, "fan of the A-positive blood, are you? I had you pegged for an O-lover myself, but I regret to inform you that the Anna Theron Blood Bank is now closed. You'll have to try harder for your next taste."

The creature turns his attention away from the ground to stare at her through dead yellow eyes. Standing on his hind legs, he's easily north of five-feet tall and looks sorely disappointed to learn that the meager sampling of blood is all he'll get. He lets out an ear splitting screech and half-runs, half-flies towards Anna, talons nearly lifting off the ground.

Anna rolls to the side at the last second, sweeping her crossbow up and putting an arrow in the back of the ahool's neck. It does little to slow him down, being just as ineffective as the ones in his ribs and wing.

Anna curses her stupidity—she shouldn't have brought the crossbow tonight. It's hard to wield, slow to reload. Honestly, she only brought the damn thing because it was a recent purchase and she wanted to test it out. Maybe she should have upgraded to the full-sized one instead of stubbornly sticking with the mini...

"Fine, dick," Anna mumbles, shaking away her distracting thoughts. "I have other treats at my disposal." Her backpack, which has been weighing her down since the beginning of this fun-filled mission, is now quickly being ripped open. Her hand squeezes around a pack and she takes it out, waving it temptingly at the creature. "Didn't I say you looked like someone who might enjoy the taste of type-O? Well here, this one's on me." Aiming for the stars, she throws the blood bag as hard as possible.

The ahool doesn't need much incentive to fly after it, but Anna is too busy feeling around for another item in her bag to really track his progress. The net gun she grasps is quickly aimed at the creature's back, and she fires it as quickly as she can. The net blooms around the ahool before encasing and entangling him, sending him plummeting towards the ground. A fine mist of snow erupts from his rough landing, and Anna shields her face with a hand even as she begins to move towards him.

She stakes the net to the ground in several places, careful to sidestep the creature's sharp claws and wingtips. A hard yank at his restrained neck loosens one of her arrows and she reloads it into her crossbow. The ahool looks a little pitiful now and if he wasn't so clearly deranged, Anna might feel bad for him. But he clearly stepped over the line when he decided to feast on humans. Ahools weren't naturally inclined to eat meat and were, for the most part, peaceful creatures. This one is nothing more than a rotten egg giving a bad name to the rest of his species.

Anna winds the crossbow and aims squarely at one of his now-bulging eyes. The shot is fast and the death just as quick.

_Well_ , Anna thinks as grabs her phone and dials one of the Guild's many numbers, _that wasn't so bad_.

* * *

The cleanup is predictably messy, however. The body has to be taken care of quickly, before it attracts the attention of any nearby _[harpies](http://www.theoi.com/Pontios/Harpyiai.html) _. By the time Anna is done writing up her field report and handing over the carcass to Cleanup for disposal, it's nearly three in the morning.

She sighs tiredly. So much for meeting the roomie.

The drive back to her apartment is a short one helped along by singing with the songs on the radio. Her hand shakes slightly when she unlocks the door to her apartment. She _really_ needs to put some of that new healing salve on her body—while she is strong, she's still only human.

She enters the apartment quietly, unsurprised to see the empty boxes outside the roomie's door. Anna's glad they won't have to share a bedroom; it'll be trouble enough having only one bathroom between the two of them.

Once again, she curses her landlord. If he hadn't raised the rent, she wouldn't need a roommate at all. The Guild's pay is crap and it seems like most of it goes towards new clothes, weapons, books, or whatever supernatural healing supplies she can get her hands on. Anna had been using the spare room to hold all of those items, though they're now stuffed into every nook and cranny of her own bedroom.

(Last week, she nearly pricked herself with a fast-acting poison dart sticking out between her mattress and bedframe when she was changing her sheets. Now all potentially lethal items are split between the four duffel bags stowed in her closet.)

If the rent were cheaper in other parts of town, Anna would totally move. But it's not, and the location can't be beat—she's only ten minutes away from the university she takes classes at and the wooded area behind the apartment complex is perfect for hiding bodies (yes, she realizes she sounds like a psychopath).

So she sucked it up and put out an ad for a roommate. It went something like, 'Roommate wanted: must be female, clean, and value privacy above all else. Will probably not see much of each other, but let's be friends if we do.' Due to it being late into the semester with most people already committed to their leases, she had only gotten one reply by someone named…Eleanor? Alyssa? Anna doesn't quite remember, but in her defense she had both midterms and a nest of flesh-eating beetles to deal with that week. She figured she'd meet the roommate eventually.

But now, in the tiny and dark apartment, Anna hopes the other woman won't need to take a late-night trip to the bathroom—she would find Anna covered in twigs and mud and blood. Not exactly the best first impression.

After Anna's done showering (and thoroughly cleaning her arrowheads in the sink), she comes out to find that the roomie's door is still firmly shut.

Good. Maybe this arrangement wouldn't be as bad as she thought.

* * *

She wakes the next morning slumped over the kitchen table, her head pressed into a napkin and a half-eaten peanut butter sandwich clutched protectively in one of her hands. Was she really so tired that she couldn't even finish _eating_? Lame, but definitely not unprecedented.

The first thing she realizes how cold it is in the apartment. She lets out a yawn and glances at the thermostat on the wall. 63 degrees…that doesn't seem right at all.

She makes a mental note to ask her landlord to fix the heater before staring down at her sandwich in contemplation. Was it still good to eat? It had been out for most of the night now. She takes a cautious bite at the corner. Yep. Still delicious.

Right when she's stuffing the rest of the sandwich into her mouth, her pager starts beeping like crazy. Anna nearly chokes in surprise, gooey peanut butter threatening to coat her lungs.

Flailing slightly, she manages to get the lump of sandwich down her throat successfully. After catching her breath, she reads the message on her pager.

_[Arachne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arachne), 9ft, 28.42°, 81.58° heading N. _

Shit. She hates spiders.

She runs to her closet to change out of her pajamas and into a pair of jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and her favorite leather jacket. She gives herself a cursory glance in her bathroom mirror and grimaces slightly.

Even after applying some of her ointments to her skin last night, the gash extending from the hairline near her temple towards her jaw is only half-healed at best, and her arms aren't much better. At least all of her bruises have already become a gross, fading yellow. Not that it mattered too much at the moment—today's hunting trip would probably add a few more accessory injuries to her body. Awesome.

Her pager beeps again when she's pouring herself a cup of milk in front of the fridge, and she glares at it in suspicion. Back-to-back pages were never a good thing.

_2nd_ _arachne, 12ft, same loc_

"Holy hell," she mutters under her breath, because those spiders are no joke. Two would be a definite pain to deal with. She retreats into her room again, this time making a beeline for her closet. Despite the fact that she opens it slowly and carefully, an avalanche of hunting supplies nearly buries her. She curses loudly and hurriedly sifts through the bags until she has what she needs.

She emerges from her room triumphantly, a duffel bag slung over her shoulder (one that does _not_ contain that pain in the ass crossbow, thank you very much). Anna shoots one last cursory look at her roommate's door, which is still firmly closed. There's no way to know if the mysterious person is in there or had already left for the day. Anna shrugs to herself before stepping outside and locking the door behind her, figuring the two of them would have to cross paths eventually.

Snow has already started falling and Anna sprints to her car, head bowed against the light flurry. Once she's inside the freezing vehicle, she digs through her pockets for her phone. While she waits for the other person to pick up, she pulls on some gloves—the right one being made specifically for archery.

When the other person finally picks up, Anna can't help but grin. "Hey. Up for some extracurricular hunting?"

* * *

Anna stretches her neck this way and that, trying to get rid of the stiffness that had resulted from falling asleep in the kitchen. Figures, it wasn't the giant bat talons or the cold hard ground that had made her feel as sore as a ninety-year old, but the damn table.

She's grumbling darkly to herself about turning it into mulch when her friend's dog suddenly appears at her side, nudging the hand that's not carrying her bow. Anna smiles despite herself and runs her fingers through his thick fur. Sven always knew when she was in a foul mood, which meant Kristoff probably knew as well.

Anna glances at the man in question, who's shuffling alongside her. Two ice axes dangle loosely off his wrist straps and his trademark gray beanie is secured on his head, a few strands of blond hair poking out from beneath it.

Others tended to think he was weird, what with his tendency to talk to his dog like Sven could answer back (though this actually isn't so far from the truth). Kristoff's parents were close friends with Anna's, and they trained their children together. Sometime shortly after their first meeting, the two of them decided to become friends. And despite all of her contacts in the Guild and beyond, Anna's never seen anyone who is as deadly with his weapon of choice as Kristoff is. It's like he was born clutching a tiny little axe in his baby hands.

The image makes her chuckle and Kristoff shoots her a look full of suspicion. "You're laughing at me, aren't you?"

Anna rolls her eyes and shifts the bow in her hand. "For such a badass, you have really low self-esteem." He bristles at that so she continues with a smirk, "And yes, I was laughing at you."

Choosing not to take the moral high ground, he sticks his tongue out at her. "Oh yeah? How's your roommate situation working out?"

The abrupt change in conversation is probably supposed to catch her off guard, but it doesn't bother her at all. "Actually, I have no idea. I haven't seen her yet. Still," Anna muses, "it'll probably be better than rooming with you."

"Hey!" Kristoff says, looking affronted. "I told you, Sven needs his own room. It's not my fault you can't make do with the living room couch." For her benefit, he says the next words out loud even as his eyes become unfocused. "Isn't that right, buddy? So Little Princess here shouldn't be allowed to complain about her roommate at all."

Also for Anna's benefit, Sven huffs warm air against her hand before darting into the forest ahead of them. Anna glares at Kristoff, who's now grinning at whatever Sven told him. "Just because you have your," Anna waves her hands in front of him, making vague gestures, "'animal whisper thing' doesn't mean you guys can talk about me when I'm right in front of you. It's _rude_. And I wasn't complaining about my roommate. Like I said, I have no idea what she's like. She could be a hermit who never leaves her room for all I know."

Kristoff looks unconvinced. "I suppose so." His face softens a bit as he continues, "But remember that I've lived with normal folk before. It's a real pain in the ass to hide such a huge part of yourself, it feels like you can't open up at all. So just be careful with what you say or do around her."

Anna bites her lip. This situation does kind of suck. Anna's a naturally friendly person, though the only people she'd consider friends are all part of the Guild. Normal people…they're off-limits. Too much liability, too many secrets to keep. Which makes it even more frustrating that she has to live with someone normal just because she can't afford a place of her own anymore.

Kristoff's looking at her expectantly so she nods in agreement. "I know, I know," she sighs. Eager to change the conversation, she asks, "How has your week been? Any good stories?"

"I got to take down a giant serpent a few days ago. That was pretty awesome," he answers, trying and failing to look modest. He had probably been waiting with bated breath for her to ask.

"Ohh, was it one of those feathered ones?" Anna asks excitedly. It seems like Kristoff always had good stories to tell.

He shakes his head and another boyish grin crosses his face. "Nah, it was a [basilisk](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilisk). It must've been like sixteen feet long."

"No way!" Anna exclaims good-naturedly. "How did you kill it without looking at it?" She realizes before he can answer, "Sven."

Kristoff hums in agreement. "He clawed out the eyes and I stabbed the heart. It took a few tries since I couldn't find it. I should really brush up on my serpent anatomy," he adds thoughtfully. "How about you? Anything good?"

Anna shakes her head. "Just more of the same. Did you know we had a [dingonek](http://cryptidz.wikia.com/wiki/Dingonek) living in the sewers? I didn't, but HQ told me he had taken a few people as snacks and so I dealt with him earlier this week. Oh," her face brightens, "and I had an ahool last night. That one was actually pretty fun. Though it's made me begin to wonder why normal, supposedly _sane_ people keep moving to Arendelle despite its relatively high mortality rates."

"Because of the decent cost of living and well-regarded school system?" Kristoff suggests half-jokingly. Anna nudges him in annoyance and he continues, "But one case right after another…that's rough. Good thing I'm here to help you pick up the slack."

"What slack?" Anna says, immediately on the defensive. "There's no slack here. I'm operating at full capacity!"

"Then why are there still crumbs on your face?" Kristoff teasingly pokes at her cheeks and Anna swats his hand away. "Do they have some magical capabilities I'm not aware of?"

A bark from Sven interrupts their bickering and Kristoff's eyes narrow in concentration. Without warning, he takes off running, feet crunching against the fresh powder. "Sven found them!" he yells to her, readying his axes. "Ready to work?"

Anna's right behind him, an arrow already nocked and ready to fly. "Bring it."

* * *

"Giant spiders, huh?" Her voice is exhausted and while she doesn't remember sitting down, she's somehow on the ground, her back propped up against a tree. The snow is soaking into her jeans but she can't summon enough energy to care. "I finally understand why everyone thought Hagrid was crazy for keeping one as a pet."

Kristoff's right beside her and Sven's already passed out at their feet. "Yeah," Kristoff answers hollowly. "Dude was clearly insane."

Anna stretches her arms over her head. "Thanks for your help today, it was greatly appreciated."

"Yeah," he nods after a moment, reluctantly hauling himself up. "Do you want to come over for some hot chocolate? I think it's my turn to make it."

"Hmm," Anna considers before nodding. "That sounds really good, actually." She reaches for Kristoff's hand when he extends it to her, wincing at her sore shoulder muscles. Her mouth turns downwards when she takes in how truly messy the two of them are.

The snow has made everything extra muddy and the spider blood is a thick, stinking blue. Anna's shoes are covered in the gunk, and generous smears of mud stain her jeans and jacket. Kristoff isn't any better—his beanie has soggy leaves pasted on one side of it, and both mud and spider blood coat him from fingertips to elbows, making him look like a child who went crazy with finger-paint.

(One reason Anna prefers her bow and arrow to close ranged weapons—less mess. While Kristoff is excellent at throwing his ice axes, he works best when they stay in his hands. The tradeoff of having to scavenge around for her arrows after a job is well worth it, in her opinion.)

"We should probably hit the camp showers before splitting up," Anna says weakly. "I don't want to go through your apartment complex looking like a murder scene."

Kristoff takes off his beanie and frowns at it. The newly uncovered hair is sweaty and sticks up every which way. "Sure. I have some extra clothes in my car if you need some."

Anna nearly dances in delight at the idea of burrowing herself into one of his large flannel shirts. At this point, she probably has more of his shirts in her closet than he does—it's becoming a problem but if Kristoff knows (which he probably does), he doesn't seem to mind. "That would be awesome," she says happily.

The two of them (plus a sleepy Sven) make their way to their cars and drive to the closest campsite. Anna has an encyclopedic knowledge of where all the outdoor showers in the forest are since she has to use them so often. The shower spray is predictably icy but Kristoff lives up to his offer; soon she's wearing a baggy blue and gray flannel shirt under her leather jacket and a clean pair of jeans she found in her trunk. She was successful in getting most of the muck off her boots and pulls them back on, ignoring the feel of the cold and wet material against her feet.

Right before she's about to leave the parking lot, Kristoff runs over and taps on her window. Wondering what he wants, Anna rolls it down.

"I almost forgot—you did Weselton's paper, right?" Kristoff asks. "I know we've both been busy with hunting over the break but today _is_ the last day before we go back to school."

Anna feels the blood drain out of her face. "P-paper?" Shit, she'd rather deal with another monster than write a paper at the last minute. How had she not remembered to do it?

Kristoff nods and gives her a sympathetic look. "Yeah. The prompt's online and it only has to be eight or so pages. You should be able to get it done in no time." They both know that's not true—Anna's horribly slow at writing papers even when she's familiar with the topic.

She feels a light pressure on her head and realizes Kristoff is giving her an encouraging pat with a gloved hand. "You can use my computer and stay over tonight if you want," he offers. "That way we can head to class together in the morning."

"I knew there was a reason you were my best friend," Anna grins up at him. Seriously, he's way more thoughtful than he would like to admit.

Kristoff pretends to act like the remark doesn't affect him but Anna can see him fighting off a smile. "Yeah, yeah. I'll see you in a little bit, okay?"

He heads back to his car and Anna follows him out of the parking lot, halfheartedly wishing she could relocate to a warmer place when her heater struggles to come on. Hunting has never been a glamorous occupation and it was definitely not for the faint of heart. Hunters had messy jobs and lived messy lives. Those jobs were made even messier in the winter, where snow and ice and cold made for more dangerous work.

In the warmer months after a job in the forest, she would have been walking through one of the small streams barefoot, her shoes hanging off the back of her neck by the laces. She'd be wearing a tank top and capris, and the camp showers would be refreshing instead of freezing. The windows of her car would be rolled down and she'd be blasting some songs she could belt along with.

Unfortunately for her, Arendelle is too far up north for summer to really stick around. Only about two months a year were warm enough to forgo sweaters; the rest shifted between moderately chilly to downright freezing.

Her heater breaks her out of her reverie when it begins to sputter feebly against the temperature. She gives it a soothing pat. "You and me both, buddy."

* * *

Anna wakes early the next morning in Kristoff's bed, Sven nosing against her face. She blinks sleepily and lightly swats the eager dog away. "No," she groans, burying her head under the pillow. "I don't wanna go to class."

Last night had been all frenzied typing, encouraging words from Kristoff, and the occasional hair-pulling moment of stress. Papers were her worst enemy, especially when they were on vague political theories from long-dead geniuses. For the millionth time, she's glad her major is mostly readings and field work.

Sven, who has apparently made it his mission to get her out of bed, starts to tug down the blankets with his teeth. The end result is Anna curled up in the fetal position as cool apartment air comes over her body.

"I hate you," she mumbles towards Sven. In response, the dog presses into her side, sharing some of his body heat, before bounding out of the room.

Anna slowly sits up and stretches. After changing back into Kristoff's flannel shirt and her clean pants from yesterday, she heads out into his main room. Kristoff's still laying down on the couch in front of the tv, sprawled out under a few blankets. His arms are folded underneath his head and he seems to be peering up at the ceiling in thought.

Anna clears her throat, wondering if she's interrupting some deep musings of his. "Do you want me to make breakfast? We have plenty of time before class."

"Oh," he blinks slowly and his pale eyes focus on her. "Sure. You know where everything is."

He eventually gets up as well, drawn to the kitchen by the smell of bacon. He feeds Sven some of his leftover eggs before going into his room and changing for class.

As Anna is drying the dishes, she can't help but smile at the easy familiarity of it all. She and Kristoff have known each other for more than ten years now, have grown from snot-nosed brats into young adults together. Their closeness is often seen as romantic, a notion both have gotten tired of correcting. They were more along the lines of siblings, fiercely protective of one another while also capable of anticipating each other's needs—something that helps them greatly whenever they hunt together.

Kristoff comes out of his room a few minutes later, fitting his freshly-laundered beanie over his hair. "Ready to go?"

"No," Anna sighs, packing away the pencil and notebook Kristoff had lent her for the day. She heads out ahead of him, hoping she can find a parking spot that isn't too terribly far from her classes.

Thirty minutes later, she skids to a stop outside of her lecture hall (quite literally as there is ice beneath her shoes), catching herself against her friend's broad shoulders. "Hey there, buddy," she says casually.

Kristoff turns around, an eyebrow already raised. "How did I end up getting here before you? And you're cutting it a bit close; you know Weselton will freak if you're late." Due to their sometimes hectic hunting schedules, both of them knew firsthand exactly how dickish their International Relations professor got if someone showed up late. One boy, a star player on the school's football team, had actually broken down in tears under the man's embarrassing, intensely personal scrutiny.

Anna gives an exaggerated shiver, recalling the first time Weselton had yelled at her. "You don't have to remind me." She holds up the cup of coffee that's scorching her fingertips through its cardboard holder. "But I figured grabbing some caffeine was worth the risk."

The two continue their chitchat while waiting for the professor to open the doors and save them from imminent frostbite. Despite absolutely despising their teacher, Anna's glad she and Kristoff have a class together. It gives them time to socialize in a monster-free setting and pretend they're just two completely normal students.

The doors open exactly three minutes before class and everyone rushes in past Weselton, who's already tutting impatiently at his students.

"I swear he'd be written up so many times by now if he wasn't tenured," Kristoff mutters under his breath as the two settle into the corner of the back row, Anna snagging the aisle seat. "Guy's a complete ass."

"Yeah, but he's an ass who can fail us. Thank god we're halfway through this awful class. For next semester, _I'll_ be the one who picks the elective," Anna responds in an equally quiet voice.

Weselton struggles to close the hall's massive doors, something that's always amusing for his students to watch. Huffing and red in the face, he struts down to the front of the room and turns on the projector, intent on starting up the same lecture from before fall break.

"Using Corona as our case study, we will continue to investigate the state's regime change from a monarchy to the modern democracy it is today," Weselton begins in his oddly-high voice. "Beginning as early as 1560—"

The class' doors open again with an ominous creak and the students hold their breath in anticipation of a verbal beat down. Anna and Kristoff both turn to see who opened the door as well, having the closest seats to the show.

It's a girl, one who seems vaguely familiar to Anna. She has long, platinum hair that seems too fine to tangle, pulled into a loose braid over her shoulder. The pale skin of her face is flushed from the sudden attention of the whole class, and Anna is close enough to see a few light freckles dusting her sharp cheekbones. Her ripped and faded jeans lead directly into a pair of ankle high motorcycle boots. A form fitting tee is visible under her unbuttoned, dark gray peacoat.

"Well, well, well," comes the snide voice of the professor. The girl tenses in response, knowing what's about to happen. "Did you just think you could stroll into my class, _late_ , because it's the first day back to school?"

"No," the girl says quickly, defensively. "I couldn't find my—"

"Do you think I want to hear your excuses?" Weselton asks, glee apparent in his face. He pushes up his glasses and continues on, "Why would you even come here if you knew you were going to be late? Do you know how _disrespectful_ that is? How _insulting_ to not just me, but to your fellow classmates?"

Anna personally feels that it's more disrespectful of him to eat away his class time like this. From the way Kristoff's shifting agitatedly next to her, she can tell that he agrees.

Weselton stays rooted to his lectern, preferring to let his voice carry across the room. "Maybe you should apologize to the class for wasting their precious time. Would you like that, class?"

Everyone stays silent, unanimously deciding to stand against their professor. Weselton frowns, not expecting this response. He snaps his eyes back to his target, who is still right next to Anna. "Well, _I_ think you should apologize," he sniffs.

Anna can practically feel the mortification rolling off of the girl and sees her ball her hands into fists. Her mouth twists unhappily and she seems to be fighting with herself to give Weselton what he wants.

"I... _apologize_ ," the girl finally forces out, looking like she's one second away from hitting the professor. Her hands are still balled and seem to be shaking with anger and embarrassment.

Weselton nods, satisfied that he's had yet another student bend to his will. "Very good. Now, where was I…"

Anna glances up at the girl, wishing she had said something to get her off the hook. Feeling someone's gaze on her, the girl turns to Anna, eyes narrowing before she realizes who she's looking at. Her reaction changes completely when the two of them lock eyes—a pink flush rises on her cheeks and her blue eyes become impossibly wide. She quickly walks down the main aisle and picks a seat far from Anna, head turning only slightly towards the back of the room as if contemplating stealing another peek at her. Apparently thinking better of it, she turns her attention to Weselton.

Kristoff starts scribbling on her notebook and taps Anna's knee to get her attention. _What the hell was that about?_ is scrawled in the margin of her paper.

Anna takes ahold of the notebook and tilts it out of his sight. She gets busy writing what looks to be an elaborate response, taking up nearly half of the class period. Kristoff eventually starts kicking her foot in impatience and she rolls her eyes before flinging the notebook in front of him. After his initial disbelief, his shoulders start to shake with silent laughter.

Anna looks down at the paper and smiles at her work of art—a giant, highly stylized question mark.

* * *

Anna gets back to her apartment late in the afternoon, having lost track of time with one of her professors during his office hours. The man, Dr. Mowgli, is an expert in the field of wildlife ecology and Anna had spent the time picking his brain about certain conservation efforts and his personal interests in the jungles of India.

Before they both knew it, his next class was about to start and they were forced to part ways. But the meeting had put her in a great mood; by the time she opens her apartment door, she's whistling a cheery tune.

Her jeans are soon off in favor of a pair of sweatpants she's practically swimming in. The apartment is warmer than she remembers it being yesterday morning, which is awesome. Actually, this seems to be one of those times where _everything_ is awesome—her hunting's been successful, she got her IR paper done, classes went smoothly, and Dr. Mowgli is sure to give her a kick-ass recommendation letter at the end of term.

She puts some pasta on the stovetop and brings her computer out of her room to boot up some catchy pop music—the perfect thing to complement her cooking. She's shaking her hips along to the tunes when she hears a scratching sound against the front door. Muting the volume, she listens a little more carefully, and yep, there's the sound again. This time it's accompanied by a slight jingling.

Eyeing her pasta in suspicion, she turns off the heat and puts the pot on a cooled burner before walking towards the front door and opening it in curiosity.

It takes quite a bit to catch Anna off guard; actually, she considers herself to be nigh-unshakeable. So when she opens the door, she expects to see someone posting a flyer on the wall next to her door or maybe even some loud, drunk underclassman wandering by.

What she doesn't expect is the pretty girl with attitude from Weselton's class to be standing in front of her, a key in her outstretched hand.

"Um," Anna says eloquently.

The girl jerks back, nearly tripping over her own feet in her effort to put some distance between them. Her face is once again flushed and her hand whips down to her side. "I'm sorry. I think I got the wrong address," she says, voice shaking slightly. She looks behind Anna to read the numbers on the door and her eyebrows draw in confusion.

"This is 304," Anna says helpfully. God, this girl is interesting. She rebelled as much as she could against Weselton, looking like she wouldn't mind taking out a hit on him, but now she seems completely flustered.

"I—" the girl still looks confused. "Do you _live_ here?" Her tone is pretty close to 'stunned', which is a little overdramatic in Anna's opinion.

Anna shrugs in response. "Either that or I'm a really laid back burglar." That doesn't seem to calm the girl down any so she adds, "I'm assuming you're my new roommate? I'm Anna," she holds out her hand in greeting.

The girl looks down at it and then at her own hand. "Elsa," she finally says, folding her arms across her chest. "We have a class together."

Okay, is this _Elsa_ purposely being rude? Anna steps aside and lets the girl pass her, something dangerously close to a smirk on her lips when she replies, "Yes, I remember." There is just enough sass in the three words meant to make Elsa wonder what exactly Anna remembers—her as a normal classmate, or her getting yelled at this morning.

Elsa comes to a stop inside the small hallway and Anna can make out the tip of a pink ear. She suddenly feels bad; maybe the girl wasn't rude, just shy. _Way to make a bitchy first impression, Anna_.

So she clears her throat and tries for a more civil tone. "I'm sorry I wasn't here to help you move in, some work-related stuff got in the way and I didn't get back until late." The words are honest and she hopes Elsa realizes that.

Anna brushes past her to renew her cooking, putting her pasta back on the burner and preparing a can of tomato sauce. Straining her ears, she hears Elsa take off her shoes before the girl comes out to the main space of the apartment and sits on one of the sunken-in couches.

Anna can feel Elsa's eyes on her back but carries on as if she doesn't notice. God, this whole thing feels so _awkward_. Even after her pasta's drained and her sauce is poured over it (along with a staggering amount of parmesan), Elsa still hasn't moved or said a word.

"So…" Anna starts, sitting down at a kitchen chair that faces Elsa. "Weselton's an ass, isn't he?"

The remark startles a small smile out of Elsa. The look throws Anna off for a moment; even if it's tiny, the smile makes Elsa look even prettier than she already is. "One could say that," Elsa answers diplomatically.

Anna snorts. "Sure. One could say many things about that tiny man. Are you a polisci major?"

"No, biology. I want to get a PhD in genetics," Elsa responds automatically, like most college students do when asked that question.

"How very Professor X of you," Anna says, impressed despite herself. "I'm in wildlife conservation." The major is one the Guild approved of and paid for. Along with a few other academic specialties, wildlife conservation is an area the Guild wants to have more of their people in, hoping they would help continue shielding humans from the supernatural world.

While it's great that they cover her tuition, they don't cover living expenses and the pay they give for hunting is laughably little. Which is why Anna is now talking to a new roommate instead of lounging around the apartment by herself. However, the overtime she pulled during fall break did allow her to spend money on this spaghetti rather than instant ramen, so at least she has that going for her.

"What made you move during the middle of the semester? Roommate trouble?" Anna hazards a guess. Elsa seems to float between 'needlessly rude' and 'strangely shy', something that perhaps caused tension at her last place.

"In a way," Elsa says eventually, casting her gaze downwards. Her teeth sink into her lower lip and Anna feels goosebumps pop up on her arms. She shivers, rubbing warmth into herself before going back to her pasta. The motions catch Elsa's attention and her head snaps up to stare at Anna.

She stands abruptly. "I'm going to bed," she announces before striding towards her room without another word. Her door click shuts behind her, leaving a very confused Anna in her wake.

"Umm…good night?" Anna says uncertainly to the empty room. She leans back in her seat, wondering if all roommates were this strange.

By the time she's finished drying the dishes and putting her leftovers in the fridge, she notices that it's once again chilly in the apartment. Before turning off the kitchen light, she takes the time to flip off the thermostat (screw you, 58 degrees).

Her usual bedtime ritual (brush teeth, put healing salve on injuries, pick out clothes for tomorrow) commences. The final step—bundling herself under her comforter like a human burrito—is a work in progress when she gets a text from Kristoff.

_-I'm hunting tonight. You're on call till dawn_

Anna frowns, her thumbs flying across her screen. _I thought it was Meridas turn. What gives?_

_-Family emergency, something about a bear, I dont know for sure_

_-Urrgh fine. Be safe. When u get back, I'll have to tell u about my roomie_

_-Finally met her? Can't wait for deets_

_-God, youre such a teenage girl sometimes. No one says 'deets'_

_-Then I guess I'll go kill something to regain my manhood. Later hater_

Anna rolls her eyes and turns her phone off. Her pager lies innocently on her nightstand, acting like it totally won't beep at some godforsaken hour.

Before she drifts off to sleep, light from the kitchen filters under her door. Anna groans and the reality that she has a roommate finally sinks in. Before, that just meant one of her rooms was off limits. Now it means she's cohabiting with some strange and pretty classmate she'd never really taken notice of.

It's weird how things worked out sometimes, isn't it?

* * *

_3:22am_

Anna blindly grasps at her beeping pager and squints through the light emitted by the tiny screen.

_[Lavellan](http://cryptidz.wikia.com/wiki/Lavellan) , 2ft, 28.36°, 81.59° reloc if poss_

"I hate my life."

* * *


	2. Domesticity for the Uninitiated

The sun is just starting to edge past the horizon when Anna shuffles through her apartment door. She slumps against it, fingers coming up to tug her beanie off by an earflap.

Stupid lavellan. It had taken forever just to cajole him out of the icy river he was in, and then getting him into the cage for relocation had proved to be even more difficult. Anna decided to just tranq the little bastard after he made her fall into the water during an escape attempt. The call she made to the Guild confirming his new location was short and clipped, belying her exhaustion. Merida better have a damn good explanation for why she wasn't on call, bear or no.

Anna's hoping to take a warm shower and maybe crawl back under her covers for another hour before she has to go to school. She pushes off the door and heads down the entryway to the kitchen, wanting to get some water before locking herself away in her room.

As she's rounding the corner, she sees a metallic object swinging towards her. Normally she'd just roll out of the way with ease, but her coordination is shot from three cases in as many days. The best she can manage is to sort of stumble over her feet until her butt hits the ground. The object _whooshes_ through the air where her shoulder would have been.

Prepared for a fight, she bares her teeth and looks up at her attacker, a hand already going for the knife in her boot.

It's…Elsa?

She's wielding a frying pan in one hand and a phone in the other, looking like she's ready to take another swing when she registers who's in front of her. The blood drains from her already pale face and she nearly drops the pan in surprise.

Anna scrambles up, an indignant finger already pointing in Elsa's direction. "What the hell was that for?" she exclaims, too shocked to try for a more civil tone. "I did _not_ come home to be assaulted with cooking utensils!"

Elsa shakes her head frantically. "I thought you were—" her eyes dart to Anna's closed door for a moment before settling back on Anna herself. "And where _were_ you?" Her tone is bordering on rude but she's taking in Anna's fresh scratches and completely soaked pants in nothing but interest.

"Don't try to change the subject! You could have dislocated my shoulder," Anna grouses. She'd already had the left one dislocated twice; a third time would just be excessive. She stands and continues, "Look, I don't know how it was at your old place, but I don't keep what you'd call normal hours." Elsa sets the pan and phone down on the table, looking properly chastened.

Anna pinches the bridge of her nose and goes on, "I work odd hours and on my way back to my car, I kind of slipped and fell into a huge puddle." Anna hides a grimace at the embarrassing lie. Unfortunately such lies would have to start becoming commonplace if her trips kept leaving obvious traces on her.

"Oh, I…I'm _really_ sorry," Elsa responds after a moment, sounding miserable. "You just caught me by surprise."

For the first time since coming back, Anna takes the time to really look at Elsa. She's dressed like she just got out of bed, hair tied in a loose ponytail at the base of her neck and her face freshly scrubbed. Strangely, she's wearing only a tanktop and some sleep shorts. Huh. Maybe Anna's the only one who slept in a ton of layers during winter. Her whole look is enough to make Anna realize some people don't have to put any effort into looking amazing.

Her anger quickly dissipating, Anna waves away Elsa's apology. "It's fine." She takes a step forward, tempted to take a seat at the table and try to chat with Elsa for a while. A wide yawn dashes the idea, reminding her that she hasn't gotten anywhere near a healthy amount of sleep these last few days. She'd be able to bond with Elsa later, providing the other girl would even be interested. "I'll see you later, okay? My bed is summoning me."

She's almost to her door when she turns around, a smirk tugging on her face. "You've got a pretty good swing. My life will be in your hands on the day we have a real intruder."

Elsa responds with a wobbly smile of her own, eyes lowering in residual embarrassment. They land on her phone and she quickly picks it up. Even after Anna closes her door, she can hear Elsa say, "Rapunzel, are you still there?"

Anna raises an eyebrow, curious despite herself. She takes off her boots and gathers her pajamas slower than usual, wondering what Elsa would tell this Rapunzel.

"How much of that did you hear?" Elsa asks the other person. After a pause she answers, "Yeah…that was my roommate, Anna… _No_ , she's not the same—yes, I'm staying calm!" Her voice is defensive and sounds anything but calm. Anna hears her pad to the other side of the apartment, and her voice starts to fade. "It's harder than I thought it would be…" are the last words Anna hears before Elsa's door shuts, presumably so her conversation could _actually_ be private.

As Anna works to peel off her soaking pants, she contemplates Elsa's last words. What was harder than she thought? Having a new roommate?

Finally successful in removing her pants, she collapses onto the floor and closes her eyes. Maybe she was being too hard on Elsa. She obviously has some things to work through (seriously, who thinks it's okay to swing frying pans around?), but she's the one coming into a new place in the middle of the semester. Anna's a normally cheerful person but fall break had taken a lot out of her, so maybe her temper is shorter than usual.

Finally dragging her sluggish body off the ground and to the bathroom, she swears a solemn oath that she'll be the best damn roommate Elsa ever has.

* * *

This proves hard to accomplish when she doesn't see her roommate for the rest of the day. School comes and goes and even when she arrives back home, Elsa is out of sight. When the sun sets, the light in Elsa's room comes on and Anna occasionally hears noise from within, but her door stays shut.

Anna drags her homework out to the living room and puts on the tv in hopes of enticing her out. This plan quickly turns south when she ends up falling asleep a few hours later, her papers scattered around her.

Anna's never been what someone would call a _graceful_ sleeper. During the course of the night she had somehow slid off the couch she was on, though a foot is still stubbornly wedged in between the cushions. One arm is cast dramatically across her face and the other is wrapped around her stomach.

She startles awake when her phone's alarm goes off. Rubbing just enough sleep out of her eyes to become temporarily functional, Anna hears movement from within Elsa's room.

With a groan she hoists herself up, a woven blanket sliding off her body. Strange, that definitely hadn't been there when she was awake.

She smiles at Elsa's thoughtfulness. Hoping to return the favor, she shuffles over to Elsa's door and knocks. "Hey, would you like a ride to school?" Anna asks, voice scratchy from sleep. "Since we have the same class I figured it might be more convenient—"

A blast of cold sweeps under the door and hits Anna's feet. " _Shit_ ," Elsa curses from the other side of the door. " _Goddamn—"_ Another gust of air comes through the door crack, this time accompanied by fresh powder.

"Elsa," Anna asks in concern, sidestepping the snow, "Are you okay?"

"No, I—" Elsa responds, sounding distressed. "My window just flew open. I'm fine."

Anna raises an eyebrow. For as long as she's lived here, none of the windows have 'flown open'. Still, if Elsa was trying to get some cool air inside it's possible that the window had somehow broken; Anna's never really tried to open them before and it wouldn't be a surprise to her if they were old and unreliable.

"Do you want help drying anything?" Anna offers, "I can get some extra towels—"

"No," Elsa says sharply. "Just go. I don't think I'm going to Weselton's class today."

Anna frowns. Even if the sound is muffled because of the door between them, she swears Elsa sounds a little shaken up. "Alright, then I guess I'll see you around," Anna says after a moment. "And…thanks for the blanket," she adds softly, a hand pressed flat against the door.

There's no response on Elsa's end. Sighing, Anna turns from the door to get ready for school.

When she steps outside and heads to her car, she's hit by sudden urge to check something out. She goes around to the side of the apartment opposite of where her car is parked. Craning her head up to look at the third story, she finds Elsa's window.

Just like all the others, it's firmly shut.

* * *

Weselton's lecture is agonizing as usual, but at least Kristoff got her a coffee before class.

She pokes him in the ribs with her pencil, causing him to flinch and his own pencil to skitter across his notes. "Thanks again for the java," she whispers.

"If this is the thanks I get, no more coffee for you," he says, erasing the lead trail on his paper. "And you need to tell me about your roommate, don't you? I've been like, _dying_ to know." He abandons his paper to stare at her with his chin propped on his hand, batting his eyes expectantly.

"You know it freaks me out when you do your Gossip Girl routine. I'll tell you after class," Anna says, rolling her eyes. He's such a dork sometimes.

"…and that is all the time we have today," Weselton's voice floats through the hall. "Make sure you read pages 120 through 190 by Friday." The class starts packing their notebooks and bundling up in anticipation of the snow still falling outside.

Kristoff gives Anna a victorious smirk. "Well what do you know, class is over."

"I-I have to get to my next class," Anna protests weakly. The two of them wince when they step outside the lecture hall only to be battered by an icy gust of wind.

"Avoidance tactics, Anna. You're using them." he says as he zips up his jacket. "Is she really that bad?"

"Well," Anna hedges uncertainly. "She's not _bad_ per say, just…right there?" She stops dead in her tracks and squints ahead of them. "Wow, it looks like she's actually _talking_ to someone."

She speed walks towards Elsa, leaving a protesting Kristoff behind. "Elsa!" she waves once she gets close enough.

Elsa takes an unconscious step back and looks pointedly at the ground. Anna lowers her arm, a sinking feeling developing in her chest. How is this the same girl who put a blanket on her last night? She looks at the person Elsa's with, wondering if she can shed some light on the enigma that is her roommate.

Elsa's companion is a pretty girl with long, blonde hair that's tied up in some elaborate fashion. She's wearing a bright pink jacket and adorable looking earmuffs. In contrast, Elsa's wearing the same gray peacoat as before, along with a pair of dark leggings and boots. The girl takes in Elsa's reaction curiously.

"Hi…" Anna says meekly, and the girl turns towards her. "I'm Anna, Elsa's roommate." Elsa is still a foot back from the two of them, looking like she'd rather be anywhere else.

The girl looks Anna up and down before giving Elsa a shrewd look. "Oh, _this_ is Anna," she turns her attention back to Anna with a grin when Elsa violently shakes her head. "I'm Rapunzel, her cousin. Nice to meet you." She extends her hand in greeting, which Anna clasps with her own.

"Good to meet you, too," Anna responds. A troubling smile comes over her face and she leans conspiratorially towards Rapunzel. "Is there anything I should know about Elsa? Any tips you could give me about living with her?"

Elsa finally takes a step forward, joining in on their conversation. "We have to go," she says unapologetically, tugging on Rapunzel's arm. "We need to continue our conversation."

Smile still in place, Rapunzel stays in her spot, looking amused by the whole situation. "She really likes chocolate. Videogames too. And if she acts like a grouch, you should know that she's actually a huge softie—"

"Rapunzel!" Elsa says, looking horrified. "Shut _up_."

Just then, Kristoff bumps against Anna's back. "Hey!" he says brightly to the two other girls. "I'm Kristoff. I take it one of you is rooming with Anna?"

There's a moment of silence while Rapunzel and Anna wait for Elsa to respond in the affirmative. Instead, she glowers at Kristoff like he kicked her puppy. Even though she's not looking in her direction, Anna glowers back. What gives her the right to stare at Kristoff like that when they've just met?

"That would be her," Rapunzel finally speaks up, pointing at her cousin. "I swear she's actually capable of showing emotions when she wants."

Kristoff nods, unbothered by Elsa's lack of reaction. He's about to speak when he suddenly starts windmilling his arms in the air, his feet sliding around beneath him in opposite directions. He tugs hard on Anna's bag to rebalance himself, nearly sending her toppling over as well.

Elsa smirks and a huff of laughter escapes her, sending a cool cloud of air towards the rest of the group.

Rapunzel fixes her with a meaningful glare before looking back at the others. "See…emotions," she says weakly.

Kristoff repositions his arm until it's around Anna's shoulders. "That's the first time I've seen her laugh," Anna grumbles, mood starting to turn sour. Elsa's kind of looking more and more like a huge jerk. She leans into Kristoff, leeching his body heat as best she can.

"I promise you, she's really just shy," Rapunzel says earnestly. Her eyes catch on Kristoff's hand hanging off Anna's shoulder, and her mouth twists in thought. "Just give her some time," she adds after a moment, "I'm sure she'll come around eventually."

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here," Elsa huffs, folding her arms across her chest. "Now let's go."

"It was nice to meet you," Anna smiles at Rapunzel. Why couldn't she room with her instead? She seems nice, friendly, and whatever other generically positive adjectives she was hoping to find in her roommate. Elsa is just…Elsa.

As if proving her point, Elsa ignores the goodbyes and starts walking away. Rapunzel shrugs apologetically at them before catching up with Elsa.

"So that's your roommate," Kristoff muses, rubbing at his chin. He lets go of Anna and the two of them start walking in the same direction as Elsa and Rapunzel. "She's kind of prickly, isn't she?"

Elsa looks back at just the right moment to see Kristoff slip on the ice again, this time falling over completely. Anna catches another smirk grace her features before she turns forward.

Feeling only a little spiteful, Anna says, "I haven't even told you how she almost murdered me with a frying pan yesterday."

* * *

She has the night _completely_ off. No scheduled monsters to kill, no extra on call to disrupt her sleep. Instead, Kristoff and Merida are on tonight, along with a couple of the others. Heh, suckers.

Anna doesn't know what to do with her free time. Sure, it's a Wednesday night so she's kind of limited on her options. Maybe she could order some Chinese and catch up on her dramas. Oh, or maybe she could start that really thick, intimidating book that's been gathering dust on her shelf for the last month.

Pondering her options, she crosses the threshold of her apartment. The smell hits her first, causing her to lose her train of thought. She quietly closes the door, wondering what could possibly be causing the odor. Of course, the answer is obvious but she refuses to acknowledge that Elsa is—

Anna jumps into the kitchen. "What are you doing?" she suddenly asks.

Elsa's back is turned towards her and it looks like she jumps a few good inches into the air. She curses under her breath and spins to Anna, who has an innocent smile on her face. "I'm cooking," Elsa says defensively, pointing a finger at the ragged apron around her neck. "Why did you have to sneak up on me?"

Anna ignores her rather hypocritical question and focuses on the countertop Elsa is working at. "Oh my god," she breathes, having forgotten that she's supposed to dislike her roommate. To the side of her is a colorful arrangement of vegetables, ranging from peppers to carrots to potatoes. Fluffy white rice is already finished cooking and it looks like Elsa is about to chop up some chicken. "How do you know how to _cook_?" That is _not_ fair.

Anna's grown up on microwaveable food and takeout, having neither the time or money to really get into cooking. Up until this moment, she's been totally fine with that lifestyle choice. But in the face of this…this _bounty_ , she realizes how much she's been missing out on.

Unable to help herself, Anna pokes her head over Elsa's shoulder, causing the other girl to stiffen. "You should thaw the chicken before cutting it," she points out sagely, as if she knows anything about cooking.

Elsa shakes her head in annoyance and moves just enough to block Anna's view of the food. "It _was_ thawed—" she mutters before stopping herself. She sighs and composes herself before looking back at Anna. "Would you like any? It'll have to be vegetarian since the chicken won't thaw in time," she adds reluctantly.

Anna gapes at her, not expecting her to actually share anything considering their previous interactions. Elsa shifts her weight from side to side as she waits for an answer. "You don't have to—"

"I'd love some!" Anna says happily, a goofy grin on her face. "Thank you! That's so nice."

Elsa leans back, obviously not expecting such a reaction. Her cheeks pinken and she looks close to smiling until her eyes catch something on Anna's body. Cooking forgotten, she steps forward. "What happened to your neck?" she asks, sounding more concerned than Anna would think possible.

Anna freezes, unsure of what she's talking about. "What?" she asks self-consciously, "Is there something on it?"

Elsa takes another step forward, coming into Anna's personal space. Her eyes find Anna's and her gaze is a bit… _intense_. Anna feels a finger gently trace the skin from the back of her neck where it meets the shoulder, all the way down to her collarbone, almost forming a 'C'.

Immediately Elsa backs up until she hits the counter. "S-sorry. I didn't mean to touch—"

"Umm, it's okay," Anna says, a little dazed herself. No one had touched her like that since…well, _Hans._ It actually felt pretty nice. She raises her hand to her neck and feels the skin Elsa had wondered about. It's an old scar, thin and silver, one that she had gotten before she had an adequate amount of healing supplies. She can't even remember what creature gave it to her, just that it must have been one of the first ones she had gone solo against.

Normally she had her hair in its usual twin braids, which would cover it. But today she hadn't bothered doing anything with her hair and it hung in loose waves past her shoulders. She thinks of something to tell Elsa, who's still staring at her from the other side of the kitchen.

"It was a long time ago, I don't really remember," she answers vaguely. "I probably just got scratched by something." Well, at least that wasn't much of a lie.

Elsa nods like the explanation makes sense and offers her a shy smile. "Between this and your soaked pants, I take it you're a bit clumsy."

 _Actually, I'm the picture of sophisticated grace_ , Anna thinks. She knows how to jump, flip, and dodge creatures without injuring herself. Walking on ice is almost second nature to her, as is climbing trees and balancing precariously on objects. Of course, it wouldn't make sense for her to tell Elsa any of that, so she grits her teeth and says, "Yep, sometimes it seems like I can barely walk in a straight line without getting hurt."

Elsa's smile becomes a little broader before she goes back to her cooking. Anna takes the following silence as a cue to go to her room and change out of her school clothes and into something more comfortable. In the privacy of her room, she wonders why Elsa is suddenly being nice to her. The girl seems to run hot and cold—one moment laughing at her best friend and the next offering her food.

Still thinking about this as she heads back into the kitchen, she sits at one of the table's chairs behind Elsa and watches her cook for a moment. "Elsa," she says since she knows it will bother her if she doesn't ask, "why do you dislike Kristoff? Do you guys have some kind of secret history I'm not aware of?"

Elsa stills for a second before going back to her pan of vegetables. "I don't dislike him," she says carefully. "I've only met him once."

"Oh," well there goes the theory that Kristoff had somehow wronged her in the past. "It just seems like you were…well, _different_ earlier, when we talked to you and Rapunzel."

"Anna, I…" Her shoulders tense up but she doesn't turn away from her food. "This whole move has just been more stressful on me than I thought it would be. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that _you're_ my roommate of all people, and—"

Anna's ears perk up at that. "Wait, what does that mean?" she asks, now wondering if _she_ and Elsa have a history she doesn't know about.

"N-nothing, I just meant that you are—and I…" she says haltingly before starting over, "It's just strange because we're in the same class. That's strange, right?"

Even though Anna had the same thought earlier, all she can do is shrug. "I suppose so," she says dubiously, since she thinks Elsa meant to say something completely different.

"Right! It's strange," Elsa repeats firmly. "And the food's ready."

Shoving aside her curiosity, she crowds Elsa again, a plate already in her hand. "I won't take too much," she promises, though she's practically salivating at the sight of all the food in front of her.

Elsa smiles again. "Take however much you want." She scoops some food onto a plate of her own and takes the seat across from Anna.

Anna takes a more modest serving than she would like and digs in. A moan escapes her and she practically melts in a puddle of how amazing it all tastes. "This is _awesome_ ," she informs Elsa, who's now looking at her with wide eyes.

"Thanks, but it's just rice, vegetables, and some spices," Elsa says once she shakes herself out of her reverie. "Nothing special."

"Have you seen the freezer?" Anna retorts. "It's full of crappy, microwave-safe blocks of carbs. Maybe I'm easy to impress, but this is delicious and you can't tell me otherwise."

That shuts Elsa up and the rest of the meal passes by in silence until it's time to do the dishes. Anna has to actually pry Elsa's empty plate out of her hand so she can wash it. "It's an exchange," she says over Elsa's protests. "You cooked and now I'll do the cleaning."

It ends in a compromise. For whatever reason, it seems to terrify Elsa that Anna might break one of her dishes (actually, that's probably because she just 'confessed' her clumsiness). Still, Elsa insists on drying the plates and cups handed to her by Anna.

To be honest, Anna thinks she can get used to this. Shared cooking, a playful argument about the dishes…these are more along the lines of what Anna had hoped to experience when she wrote up her advertisement.

Elsa seems happier too, as if a weight has been taken off her shoulders. Anna still has her doubts about how long this mood will last before she goes back to being withdrawn, but she decides to enjoy it while she can.

Anna bids her goodnight after all the dishes are done, feeling full and sleepy. It turns out her free night wouldn't be about catching up on shows or books, but just a few more hours of sleep.

Before she hops into bed, she treks over to the bathroom to brush her teeth, inadvertently overhearing the beginning of a conversation coming from Elsa's room. Elsa's voice is light and Anna can imagine a smile on her face when she says,

"Hey, Rapunzel. You were right, I think I'm going to stay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If Elsa's personality seems a bit erratic, that's because it's supposed to be. Though it doesn't help that Anna is completely oblivious to Elsa's feelings, which makes things even harder for poor Elsa. I know this is more of a domestic-focused chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless!


	3. The Moon Invites the Madness

"Yes, I love this one!" Anna grins, turning the volume up a little more.

In the passenger seat, Elsa is wearing a pained expression. "What…what is this?" she asks after a moment, not sounding as if she'll particularly like the answer.

"This is Ellie Goulding! Don't pretend like this song isn't catchy as hell," Anna shoots back. One of her hands taps rhythmically against the steering wheel.

"Yeah, well so is syphilis," Elsa mutters, actually _cringing_ when Anna begins to move her shoulders in time with the music.

Anna spares her a pitying glance. "Oh don't tell me you're one of those 'I only listen to moody indie music and am therefore superior to everyone else' types. They're no fun." Elsa simply huffs and folds her arms, which pretty much means she's guilty as charged. "Let me guess…Bon Iver, Elliot Smith, maybe some Arcade Fire for when you don't totally hate the world?"

Out of the corner of her eye, Anna sees Elsa shift in agitation. "We just have different tastes in music, that's all. I like what I like, and you like…" she gestures at the radio with a flip of her hand, "whatever this is."

Thanks to ingesting some foul tasting instant coffee earlier, Anna is too chipper to let Elsa's perceived musical superiority bother her. "This is poppy, catchy music. There's nothing wrong with liking different genres but," she slows to a stop at a red light. "you can't dance like crazy to Skinny Love."

Elsa sighs, obviously knowing she can't win against Anna's infallible logic. "Well, I guess not. But I don't dance in the first—"

"—CHORUS!" Anna yells, making Elsa flinch in surprise. Anna raises her hands above her head and wiggles her hips, mouthing the lyrics to her passenger. "Join in anytime, Elsa."

"Oh god," Elsa mumbles in embarrassment when she catches the commuters next to them staring. "Why is this happening to me?" She brings a hand up to cover her eyes as if the action can turn her invisible.

The song fades away to a commercial break and Anna pouts. Damn, she was sure she could get Elsa to dance to that one.

The two weeks since Elsa moved in had gone well, all things considered. Anna hasn't had any assignments since the lavellan (which is actually not a good thing, but she'll enjoy the break while she can), she's chipping in for groceries in exchange for Elsa cooking dinner for her, and Elsa herself has allowed Anna to chauffer her to class three days a week.

Any reservations Elsa apparently had with living with Anna seem to have gone into remission. While she's still not as bubbly as her cousin, she'll actually smile every now and then at Anna, and feels comfortable enough with her to snark at her music and television choices.

("Whatever," Anna had scoffed back one evening when Elsa walked in on her weekly 'Grey's Anatomy' night, "I caught you watching the Kardashians before you flipped the channel, so you have absolutely no room to talk.")

Elsa actually reminds Anna of a [manticore](http://mythicalanimalscience.blogspot.com/p/manticore.html)—just like the creature shot quills at its foes, Elsa buffeted her with sarcastic remarks. She almost took offense to the jabs during the first few days until she realized that's just how Elsa is once she's relaxed. Plus, as Rapunzel had told her, Elsa sometimes seems to be softer than she lets on, which is especially apparent in the way her eyes light up whenever she watches Anna eat her cooking.

It's…comfortable, whatever it is they have. It's right on the verge of friendship, probably _would_ be friendship except for the odd times Elsa decides to shut her out. Take the one time Elsa forgot to grab her pajama bottoms before she went for a shower. She came out to face Anna wearing only a baggy shirt that just hit the top of her (admittedly gorgeous) thighs. Elsa had slowly backed into her own room and Anna hadn't seen her for three days.

Then there's the fact that she _still_ won't sit with her and Kristoff in Weselton's class. Despite saying she has no issues with Kristoff, Elsa has avoided talking to him. Anna's hoping today will be the day that changes, but she's not hedging any bets.

After she finds a decent parking spot, the two of them continue their light bickering all the way to the lecture hall. Sure enough as soon as Kristoff is in sight, the smile on Elsa's face fades away and she's off to the other side of the building.

"What is her deal?" Anna says in exasperation. "Do you stink or something?" She sniffs at Kristoff's fleece jacket. "Actually you do smell a little like wet dog." Anna can easily imagine him rolling around with Sven in the snow right before class.

Kristoff narrows his eyes at her. "Just for that, I'm not going to give you my theory on your roommate." He's never seemed offended that Elsa is avoiding him like the plague, though it bothers Anna enough for the both of them.

"Wait, you have a _theory_?" Anna asks, impressed. "That's more than I have." She just figures Elsa's not a people person—besides the times they drive to school or eat together, Elsa is usually in her room. Who knows, maybe she only puts up with Anna just because they're roommates. Somehow the thought is kind of depressing.

"I do," Kristoff confirms. "But never mind about that right now. There's something much more important going on…" he kicks at a small pile of snow, "the lack of cases."

Anna sighs and leans against the brick of the lecture hall. So it's bothering him, too. "Yeah, I've definitely noticed. Added to the fact that the full moon is tonight…I have a feeling we're about to get slammed."

Anna's father used to tell her, _"Bad things always happen during a full moon."_ It was one of the first lessons she had taken to heart. Her lips thin like they always do when she thinks about him.

"We should watch a movie tonight," Kristoff says suddenly, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Chill before we have to go out. The moon'll be full all weekend, so we might as well have some fun before work starts up again."

"That sounds like a good idea," she pushes aside her memories and gives him a grateful smile. "Where do you want to meet up?"

Kristoff suddenly looks shifty. "Actually…would your place be alright? I hosted last time."

Anna runs through it in her head. She'd have to let Elsa know, but it shouldn't be that big of a deal. If she still wanted to avoid Kristoff, she could stay in her room. "That works," Anna says after a moment. "Sven can come too."

"Pssh, like he wasn't going to come anyways," Kristoff says breezily. His eyes zero in on the shirt under Anna's jacket and his hand comes back up to tug gently on its collar. "When are you going to stop wearing my clothes?"

Anna looks down at the green and black flannel. "Maybe when you stop offering them to me? Seriously, these shirts are awesome. Plus you've already broken them in so they're extra soft." A jacket, a flannel shirt, and a pair of skinny jeans were all she usually wore during school nowadays.

Kristoff chuckles and puts his hand around Anna's neck to bring her in for a noogie, ignoring her protests. "That's because I've been giving you all the ones I grew out of like four years ago, leech."

"YOU TWO," the familiarly annoying voice of their professor catches their attention and they look over at the hall's entrance. Weselton is staring right at them with a strangely narrowed gaze. "Yes, you! Stop flirting and get inside my classroom unless you want an absence for the day!"

The other students filtering into the class look at them in amusement and Anna thinks she sees a flash of white-blonde hair go by. Kristoff immediately lets go of Anna to stand a safe distance away. "Spoken like a man who's never gone on a date," he mutters under his breath as he and Anna hurry up the steps.

On the last step, Kristoff's foot slips backwards and it's only his proximity to the handrail that keeps him from hitting the ground. Anna barely restrains a laugh at the look of frustrated confusion on his face. "Why are you suddenly slipping on ice everywhere?" she asks as they settle into their usual seats. "You're a hunter, this is starting to get embarrassing."

* * *

Once class is finished, Anna waves goodbye to Kristoff and hurries to catch up with her roommate. "Hey, Elsa!"

Elsa turns around with an eyebrow raised before she continues walking. "Yes?" she says almost impatiently. There it is again, her occasional 'Ice Queen' persona, the one that was present in their first few interactions. Anna doesn't know what she's doing (if anything) to make Elsa retreat back into her moody shell.

"I just wanted you to know that Kristoff is coming over for a bit tonight. We're going to watch a movie, though I don't know which one yet," she starts, unsure of how Elsa will react.

Elsa stuffs her hands in her pockets. "Okay?" she asks as if wondering how this news concerns her.

"I…I think it would be cool if you watched it with us," Anna says, biting her lip once the words spill out. That wasn't supposed to be part of the plan. But if she's being honest with herself, she really does want Elsa to at least _tolerate_ Kristoff (plus it'd be the first time she and Elsa would be together outside of dinners and car rides).

Elsa stops abruptly, causing the student behind her to nearly bump into her. Anna quickly moves in front of her to avoid blocking the flow of walkers. Elsa…doesn't look happy. A grimace is pulling at her mouth as she thinks about the offer. In response, Anna puts on her best puppy dog eyes, the ones that cause Kristoff to give her almost anything she wants.

Apparently it works; Elsa gives a defeated sigh. "Fine. See you at home." She shoulders past Anna and is off without another word.

Anna looks after her, wondering if that counted as a victory.

* * *

The rest of the day goes by slowly as it usually seems to on Fridays. By the time she, Kristoff, and Sven finally arrive at her place, Anna's about to kick the door down in eagerness.

Instead, she slots her key into the lock like a sane person might, and shoulders her way inside. "And now for the movie!" she says excitedly and with no ado, "I'm thinking _10 Things_ or _Mean Girls_. You?"

Kristoff kicks his boots off and looks around the apartment like he hasn't seen it before. "What's up with your heater? It's kinda cold in here," he says, choosing to keep his beanie on. Sven quietly huffs in agreement.

Oh, yeah. _That_. "I have no freaking clue," Anna responds, shrugging out of her jacket. "I had the landlord look at it but he said he couldn't find anything wrong. Sometimes it works, sometimes it half-works. I guess today it's the latter." She's actually gotten used to the unpredictable fluctuations of the heater, though today it's particularly uncomfortable. "Want some hot chocolate to warm you up?"

Kristoff pretends to think about it. "I suppose that'd be nice."

Anna flicks on the kitchen lights and busies herself with her hot chocolate preparations, noting the distinct lack of light from under Elsa's door. "How much cocoa do you want?" she asks Kristoff, who's opted out of sitting at the table. Instead, he's sprawled spread-eagled on the floor like some kind of heathen.

He lifts his head up. "Just the usual amount. And if you have some cinnamon, that'd be awesome." Sven stares dolefully at him and Kristoff chuckles. "And maybe something for Sven?"

"I'll see what I can do," she responds dryly. Since what feels like the beginning of time, she's always kept a tin of dog treats at her place as well as a few high-quality toys tucked in the corner of the living room. She takes the tin out of the cupboard and Sven pads up to her in anticipation, nails clicking against the wood. She lets the dog pick out his own rawhide bone and he bounds back to Kristoff with it, tail wagging in excitement.

Going through the familiar motions of making the hot cocoa is soothing, and the next few minutes pass by in silence until Anna finishes mixing the instant powder (with extra marshmallows, of course) into two mugs of milk. She settles on the floor next to Kristoff, passing him a mug once he sits up. They sit quietly together, occasionally bumping shoulders, until they finish their respective drinks.

"Do you want me to take a look at your heater?" Kristoff asks. "Or I guess you could stay on my couch tonight. It's not good to sleep here when it's this cold." He stretches out his hand towards her and Anna automatically gives him her own empty mug. Standing slowly, he goes into the kitchen to clean them in the sink.

"I'll be fine," Anna responds, leaning on her hands and stretching her legs out in front of her. "It's not usually this bad. I'm more worried about Elsa—I don't know how sensitive to the cold she is."

As if taking her remark as a cue, Elsa's door opens. She steps out uncertainly, wearing a sweater and the same jeans as earlier. Despite the chill, her feet are bare. "Hi," she says with a small nod once she sees Anna. Kristoff turns the water on in the kitchen and Elsa's eyes slide towards him.

"You remember Kristoff, don't you?" Anna directs towards Elsa. He gives them both a soapy wave in return but Elsa remains silent. "And that's Sven," she adds belatedly. The dog in question is still steadfastly chewing on his bone, blissfully unaware of everything around him.

Just now realizing she's still on the floor, Anna clambers to her feet. Elsa still hasn't moved from her spot by her door so Anna pipes up, "Feel free to join us. Do you have any movie suggestions?"

Elsa shrugs. "Whatever's fine." She heads over to the couch, a look of grim determination coming over her face. Once she's sitting down, she tucks her feet beneath her and presses her entire side into the armrest, as far away from the rest of the couch as possible.

Anna represses a frown. Would this really be such an ordeal for her? If so, why did she agree to the movie in the first place?

Kristoff finishes with the mugs and joins them, sitting on the opposite end of the couch as Elsa. In stark contrast to Elsa's tightly wound body, he splays out comfortably, legs taking up space in front of the couch and an arm coming up to rest against the seat cushions. "Hey," he says simply towards Elsa once he's settled.

Elsa's head turns slightly in his direction, making the tiniest bit of eye contact before muttering a "Hi," of her own.

Well, this is going swimmingly.

Anna stands in front of them with her hands on her hips. "Okay, so what will it be?" If no one else is going to address the awkwardness, Anna won't either.

Elsa stays quiet and Kristoff lazily raises a hand. "I vote for _10 Things_. You've made me watch _Mean Girls_ like forty times."

"You make it sound like I held you against your will," Anna retorts as she gets the movie ready. Shortly after her 21st birthday the two of them had watched the movie, drunkenly yelling lines at each other. That night she learned Kristoff had a surprisingly accurate Regina George impression.

Anna flops down on the couch once the sweet sounds of 'Bad Reputation' spill out of the tv and Julia Stiles pulls up next to a carful of teenyboppers. Kristoff hasn't left her much room and so she scoots a little towards Elsa, who tenses in response and presses herself even further into her armrest.

Anna finds the behavior a little odd, though as she thinks about it, she realizes the only time Elsa's ever touched her was when she was pointing out her scar (and even that seemed to have taken her by surprise). Anna has no such qualms about touching others—she had been raised in such a way that casual touches were the norm, whether they be in learning how to hold a weapon properly or giving her parents a tight hug before they left on an assignment.

Anna can't tell if Elsa's seen the movie before and decides it would be best to be silent while it's on, though she can't help but sneak occasional glances at her. The blonde is extremely still through the beginning of the film, as if moving even slightly might have some great consequence. And even though Anna never looks directly at her, the lines of tension running through Elsa are clear as day—from the way her hand is tightly gripping the armrest to how her elbow is pressed tightly against her side. Underneath the pale skin of her face, her jaw seems to be clamped shut. Perhaps she _is_ forcing herself to stay out of politeness, or maybe she's just much shyer than Anna had previously thought.

Wanting to give her some breathing room, Anna shifts slightly towards Kristoff. Maybe the movie itself would get her to loosen up—who didn't like _10 Things I Hate About You_?

Kristoff grins throughout the movie, chuckling at the antics of the characters on screen. It doesn't take long for Anna to join him. Even though she's seen the movie countless times, it never fails to be entertaining. Elsa eventually shifts slightly, releasing her death-grip on the armrest. By the time Heath Ledger is crooning 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You', she's sitting cross-legged and her shoulders are loose. Even the apartment seems a little warmer, though that could be the hot chocolate speaking.

But the atmosphere, at least for Anna and Kristoff, soon shifts once the sun goes down. The two exchange a glance and one of Anna's legs begins to bounce restlessly. Kristoff puts a calming hand on her knee, only to take it off when Elsa shoots the two of them a look.

Still, Anna can't help but be anxious. It feels like her pager will go off in any second, signaling a long and probably painful weekend ahead of her. When her leg starts bobbing again, Kristoff silently gets Sven's attention and tilts his head toward Anna. Obediently, Sven comes over and sits on her feet. Kristoff grins and reaches down to pat him, but when he comes back up Anna can see that he's just as tense as she is.

Kristoff's pager beeps right when an argument is about to break out at prom, causing all three of them to jump. He glances down at it and pulls a face before discreetly showing it to Anna.

_[Mon. d. worm](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongolian_death_worm),5 ft, 28.37°, 81.55°, reloc_

Anna bites her lip to keep from laughing at his misfortune. But really, a Mongolian death worm? Despite the name they weren't too terribly dangerous, but relocating one would be messy and time consuming. Kristoff would probably be out most of the night.

But before she can silently make fun of his assignment, her own pager goes off. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Elsa twist to get a better view of them, probably wondering what was up with the interruptions. Anna unclips the pager from her jeans and stands up to read it so it's out of Elsa's view.

_[Mapinguari](http://non-aliencreatures.wikia.com/wiki/Mapinguari), 5ft, 27.37°, 83.43° _

Her eyes widen. Holy _shit_. Mapinguaris weren't supposed to be seen at all during the winter and even in the summer they were pretty rare. The full moon indeed brought out all the monsters.

She jerks her head back up. "We have to get going," she says to Elsa apologetically. "Duty calls."

Elsa looks between her and Kristoff, confused. "You work together too?" she asks, but as soon as she says it she stares down at her hands. Anna feels a twinge of something go through her, something that seems like guilt. She feels like she's abandoning Elsa but at the same time she can't delay at all—the GPS coordinates were too close to the edge of town for her comfort.

"Yeah, when we need to. Most of the time we're doing separate things," Anna answers carefully before going into her bedroom and digging through her closet for what she'll need. Her bow and arrows are already in her trunk but she adds a couple of daggers, some tranquilizer darts, a fresh can of mace, and her trusty net gun.

The last thing she grabs before she leaves her room is her black leather jacket. It may not be as warm as her other coats, but it looks damn cool and is better at taking a beating. She comes back out a couple minutes later, pulling her duffel's strap over her shoulder.

Kristoff is milling around with Sven, clearly not wanting or needing to leave right away. He gives Anna an expectant look and she shows him her pager with a smug look.

"That is _not_ fair," he groans, pushing her hand away in disgust. "Not fair at all." He grabs his boots and like a petulant child, sits on the floor and pouts as he puts them on.

Anna turns towards Elsa, her smugness turning into a genuine smile. "Thanks for watching the movie with us, even if we didn't really finish. I'll probably be back in a few hours." While she had only fought one mapinguari in the past, it was one of her easier assignments. One shot through the eye should be all it takes, though tracking it down might be a bit difficult. And if it decided to put up a fight…well, things might get nasty.

Elsa's eyes seem to be caught on her jacket, and she blinks before looking at Anna's face. She registers the words and frowns. "What exactly do you do?" she asks, not sounding very happy.

Quickly grabbing a bottle of water before heading towards the front door, Anna feigns momentary deafness. "What was that?"

Elsa follows them towards the door. "I said—"

"—See you later, Elsa!" Anna waves over her shoulder before opening the door and stepping outside with Kristoff and Sven.

Kristoff fails to contain his smirk, which remains steadfastly present even after the walk to their cars. "What?" Anna finally asks, annoyed.

"I know why Elsa doesn't like me," he says with supreme satisfaction. "And it is _good_."

"Congratulations," Anna deadpans. She tosses her duffel into the passenger seat and leans against the door. "Well?" she prompts after a moment of silence. "Are you going to tell me?"

He gives her a shrewd look of consideration. "Only if we switch assignments," he decides.

Anna laughs, "Not a chance, Mr. Death Worm. Have an awesome night." With that, she gets in her car and reverses out of the parking lot, leaving a disgruntled friend behind.

* * *

She doesn't even have time to finish pulling her arrow out of the mapinguari's head when she gets her next page.

_[Amomongo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amomongo), 5ft, 27.37°, 83.43°_

"Are you kidding me?" she mutters in disbelief. "What is with these apes?" But something about the message nags her and she checks it again instead of putting it away.

The coordinates. They're exactly the same as the mapinguari.

She doesn't even have time to curse when the amomongo slams into her, having been waiting in the tree above.

Her bones creak at the unexpected weight on top of them, and yep, her left shoulder's popped out of its socket. The breath's knocked out of her for a moment and she thinks a rib might be broken. Her fingers scrabble at the ground, trying to grab anything—her arrows, the mace, a goddamn _rock_ —that's in reach.

Nothing. There's nothing but snow and a corpse that's too far away.

The amomongo is _pissed_ , and one of his hands yanks her around by her bad shoulder so he can scream at her face. Anna snarls back out of pain but her new position is one she can use to her advantage.

The creature doesn't offer her much chance though; thick, black fingers come up around her mouth and throat, squeezing hard enough to ache. She struggles for breath, her own good hand desperately reaching down past the hem of her jeans and towards her boot. The tips of her fingers brush the dagger there and she grasps it as stars begin to explode behind her eyes.

Bringing it up, she plunges the blade into the creature's jugular, yanks it out, and stabs him in the chest. Hot blood splashes across her face and jacket but the creature lets go of her, roaring in pain.

Anna takes a gasping inhale, rib twinging in agitation. She takes another one for good measure and walks the two steps towards the mapinguari to pull her arrow out. The amomongo twitches pathetically nearby, slowly bleeding out.

Still, Anna's not going to wait and see if he'll have a dying spurt of energy. Since she can't pull back her bow in her current condition, she uses the arrow as another dagger, thrusting it into his eye until she feels the arrowhead scrape against the back of his skull.

Backing up until she feels a tree against her, she slides down onto the ground. Her wheezing continues even as she calls Cleanup. "I've got both the mapinguari and amomongo," she says, voice nothing but a harsh whisper. "Yes, _both_. Tell Recon to get their shit together; it's their job to let me know a creature's around _before_ it's literally on top of me."

She hangs up and focuses her attention on her shoulder. Grabbing it, she slams it back into its socket before she has time to hesitate. The scream that comes out is more frustration than pain.

She fucking _hates_ the full moon.

* * *

When she comes through her apartment door later, she knows she doesn't look very good. Her left arm's cradled gingerly against her chest even though her rib is adamantly against the action. She managed to wipe most of the blood off her in the car but there's still some in her hair and under her fingernails. Bruises will soon be forming across her lower face and neck. Though as always, her jacket managed to pull through without any substantial damage.

All she wants is a hot shower and some good medicine, maybe even a meager amount of sleep before her next assignment comes up. What she doesn't want is a confrontation with Elsa, which unfortunately seems likely seeing as she's standing in the living room, hands folded over her chest. But whatever indignation she might have had over Anna ditching her and then coming back late dissipate when she takes in Anna's appearance.

"What…what happened to you?" Elsa asks, eyes raking over every inch of Anna's figure. "Do you need to go to the hospital?"

Anna gives her a lopsided shrug. "Nah, I'm fine." Well, at least her voice is starting to come back. "I ahh…I fell." Yep, the lie's awful.

Elsa's shaking her head like she wants to argue, but Anna continues, "I need to get some sleep. See you in the morning, okay?" By then, her healing supplies will have taken care of the deeper injuries, though she'll probably have to put cover-up on her bruises.

"Anna, wait—" Elsa's hand touches her bad shoulder, causing Anna's teeth to sink into her bottom lip to prevent her from hissing in pain. Instead, she steps away just enough to break Elsa's hold. She looks up into her face, somewhat surprised to see the worry so clearly etched across her features. "I just wanted…I made salmon tonight," Elsa says quietly. "There's leftovers in the fridge."

Despite her stiff behavior earlier it seems like Elsa does indeed have a bit of a soft spot, at least where Anna's stomach is concerned. Anna gives her a wobbly grin. "Thanks. You're the best."

* * *

The rest of the weekend passes by in blur of assignments. Most of them are relatively benign, involving creatures who just require relocation away from the human population. But even then, it's rare for her to finish an assignment in pristine condition. In the past this had never been much of a problem, as she had the privacy of her own place. But Elsa changed things.

While Elsa had been concerned that first night, she quickly became concerned and _frustrated_ by Anna's injuries and the subsequent lack of explanation.

Take the time Anna came back from dealing with a demon-possessed coyote, which gave her a bloody leg and another rip in her jeans. "I fell."

Or the [triffid](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triffid), which had wrapped its poisonous tongue around her arm, leaving a winding welt from elbow to fingers. "I fell."

Even the baby [cockatrice's](http://inkwellideas.com/ecologies/cockatrice/) talons had managed to give her three parallel scratches down the side of her face. "I um…fell?"

That had been the last straw for Elsa. "Fine!" she yells, throwing her arms in the air. "You're out _all night_ and then keep coming home like this, yet you want me to believe you keep falling?" A hand raises to rake through her hair, and she comes close to Anna, eyes imploring. "Just tell me what's going on, _please._ "

The look Elsa gives her is almost enough for Anna to spill the beans. Then she remembers these beans were 'I hunt magical creatures for a living. Coincidentally, _never_ go into the woods'. So she shuts herself in her room instead, preferring not to confront Elsa at all.

She hears Elsa slam the front door a few minutes later, obviously wanting to be away from the apartment and her strange, perpetually lying roommate.

 _This whole situation sucks,_ Anna concludes. She should have come up with some sort of cover story that could explain away her injuries and odd hours. But what could that possibly be, mafia enforcer? Up and coming street fighter? Maybe Kristoff could help her establish something that sounds halfway legitimate, or at least give her lessons on how to lie better. He was right when he said living with normal people sucked.

Right when Anna is sneaking out of her room for a snack, Elsa barges back through the door. Her pale cheeks are a startling pink, as if she's been running in the snow. Her windswept hair has half-melted snowflakes in it and she's actively _glaring_ at Anna.

Anna carefully puts her box of cereal down, feeling hot under Elsa's scrutiny. "Look," Elsa starts, coming to stand at the opposite end of the table, "whatever it is you're doing, I need to know. I understand that we're not all that close, but seeing you come through the door like that, even if you do seem to heal quickly…I don't like it."

"Then don't worry about it," the words leave Anna's mouth without her permission. But dammit, she doesn't want to fight with Elsa, not over something she can't possibly be honest with her about. And why would Elsa care so much anyways? Just because they shared the occasional dinner or car ride didn't mean they were friends.

Elsa's eyes widen. "Seriously? I shouldn't be worried that nearly every time you've walked through the door this weekend, you've been bruised and bloodied?"

Anna puts an arrogant tilt in her chin. " _Yes_. I'd rather you just stay out of my business. This has nothing to do with you."

"I…" Elsa pauses, at a loss of words. In a voice that's close to a whisper, she says, "I'm concerned about you, that's all."

Anna tries to think of a possible response to such a statement when her pager beeps. Elsa flinches at the sound, lips thinning. "You're going again, aren't you?" She sounds like she's ready for another round of arguing.

Out of habit and despite Elsa trying to speak to her, Anna looks down at her pager.

_[Sigbin](http://faye-oh-schizo.deviantart.com/art/SIGBIN-291657596), 4ft, 26.34°, 82.43°_

Her blood runs cold in her veins and her combativeness instantly changes to dread.

_No._

Elsa's still talking to her but it sounds like she's underwater. "I need to leave," Anna says mechanically, cutting her off mid-sentence.

"You are _not_ going out again!" Elsa says in disbelief.

Anna doesn't answer, just goes into her room to grab her duffel before coming back out. She's on autopilot, mind already focusing on what she'll have to deal with tonight.

"…Anna. _Anna_ ," Elsa's trying to talk to her again, or get her to listen to reason. "Would you just—"

"Leave it, Elsa," Anna snaps, tension coloring her words. "Just stop." She puts on her shoes and heads outside, ignoring the chill in the air.

She has bigger things to worry about.

* * *

Though it's not known to many, Arendelle has a surprising number of caves. They're not very deep, but they're plenty dark and private enough for those who wish to dwell in them.

Anna's headlamp sweeps the cave's entrance and she takes a careful step inside.

The odor is enough to make her gag and her eyes to water. It's a mix of the sigbin's natural ( _disgusting_ ) odor and a scent that she hoped never to come across again.

Her hand tightens around the dagger she's holding and she ventures further into the cave, making sure she doesn't fall on the slippery surface. The stench only becomes stronger the farther she walks, until she feels like she can barely breathe. She brings the crook of her elbow up to cover her nose but even then the odor is too overpowering.

"Where are you, you little bastard?" she murmurs, voice bouncing off the cave's walls. "Just show yourself so I can go take a nice shower already." Talking to herself gives her a small measure of comfort, a little boost of confidence she sorely needs.

Until she steps on something that makes a sickening _squelch_.

Heart beating painfully fast, she looks down at the human arm under her foot. " _Shit—_ " she slips in her haste to scramble away from the limb, landing on the rest of the person's body. The relative warmth of the cave compared to the outside made the body decompose quickly, even though he ( _he,_ Anna thinks numbly, staring into his empty face) couldn't have been here for more than a few days.

 _Exsanguinated_ is the word that comes to mind. Except for the teeth marks near his carotid and a few whip-like lashes on his extremities, the man's as pale as snow, not a single drop of blood left in him.

Anna stands slowly, bracing herself against the cave's wall. She breathes deeply, ignoring the smell.

In. Out.

Ignoring the memories of the first corpse she ever saw.

In. Out.

Ignoring how her father had looked after she told him—

A whistling sound reverberates through the cave, and Anna lifts her arm to her face just in time for it to be met by the sigbin's tail. The appendage digs deep into her skin before disappearing into the darkness.

The next attack is quieter, aiming for her head. Blood runs across her temple and down her jaw but she manages to grip the tail with her free hand, and in one smooth motion cuts the barbed tip off. The sigbin's answering screech is the sweetest sound she's heard tonight.

The air in front of her glimmers and the sigbin appears before her, no longer invisible. He doesn't look very impressive, having roughly the same appearance as a common goat. His eyes reflect red in Anna's headlamp and he moves slowly towards her, intent on draining her dry. Sigbins move in odd, erratic ways, ways that by all rights should be amusing. But in the damp, dark cave with at least one corpse nearby, Anna sees nothing funny about this situation.

The creature walks backwards, stepping in the drops of blood from his tail. His head dips into his chest, eyes visible between his hind legs. His tail lashes out again but when Anna swipes at it with her dagger, it retreats again.

Anna hurriedly wipes the blood out of her eye and reaches for a second blade in the waistband of her pants. When the sigbin is close enough, she flings the new dagger straight between his legs. His head snaps up, avoiding the weapon, and he turns his neck 180 degrees to look at her.

"Screw this," she mutters before running straight at the creature. His mouth opens, revealing a set of razor-sharp teeth. But before he can clamp his jaw around her, Anna has already set her dagger in between his ribs. Her hands are around his mouth and she wrestles him to the ground.

The creature struggles, tries to buck her off. Anna grimaces as his tail strikes her head again but she holds on, fingers sneaking towards his eyes. Her thumbs find their two targets and plunge inwards as deeply as they can.

He convulses once before a last gasp leaves his mouth. His blood-red tongue lolls out, landing across one of her arms.

Anna rolls off him, panting, and stares at the stalactites on the ceiling.

It takes a long time for her to catch her breath, and even longer for her hands to stop shaking enough to call the Guild.

* * *

Elsa's still up when she comes back. Of _course_ she is. She gets to see Anna in all her hunter glory—half of her face is covered in blood and she smells absolutely putrid. Anna ignores her presence, slowly taking off her shoes and jacket.

She should have gone over to Kristoff's tonight. He may have been out hunting, but she has a spare key and would have been granted a modicum of privacy—something she sorely needs after fighting the sigbin. The creature had stirred up all kinds of memories with his presence, memories she would rather not revisit.

"We have class tomorrow," Anna says as she takes her gloves off. Words begin to spill out of her, uncontrolled, only a little hysteric. "Both of us should probably be asleep right now. I know _I_ don't want to get on Weselton's bad side again. Did you do the reading? I think he said something about a quiz last—"

"Anna…." Elsa's voice is soft, and Anna can hear a lingering wariness from their last conversation.

"And his quizzes are _hard_ , right? Like what kind of professor makes a thirty question quiz? That's got to be against some sort of rule."

"What happened tonight, Anna?" Elsa's not wearing her pajamas. Had she been up waiting for Anna to return?

"And his actual tests are so—" Anna stops talking when she feels Elsa's finger against her cheekbone, wiping a trickle of blood away. Anna nearly buckles at the gesture. "I'm sorry I can't tell you," she whispers, not able to look at Elsa. "I'm not usually like this. I'll be fine by morning, I promise. You're mad at me and I hate that. I know you probably want to yell at me right now but…" her hands ball into fists and her voice cracks, "Can you just…just hug me? Please."

She hears a sharp inhale of breath, feels an exhale smelling of peppermint fan across her face. Elsa's arms are hesitant when they wrap around her back, and she's stiff and uncertain. But it's more than enough for Anna, who leans gratefully into her roommate. Her own hands find Elsa's shirt and hold onto it before slowly sliding around Elsa's waist.

The two remain quiet and soon Elsa melts into the embrace. Anna feels fingers gently combing through her hair and another hand rubbing soothingly up and down her spine. She sighs, face pressed against Elsa's collarbone. This is the most relaxed she's felt since they watched the movie.

Anna pulls back some immeasurable time later, heart finally settled. Elsa's only a foot away, looking down at her with an unreadable expression. Anna's eyes catch on something and she bites her lip self-consciously.

"Sorry," she whispers, staring at the bloodstain she left on Elsa's shirt.

Elsa looks down and a frown comes over her face. Somehow, Anna thinks it isn't because of the stain, but the fact that it's _Anna's blood_. "It's fine," she answers just as quietly. She looks back to Anna. "Will you be alright?"

Anna gives her a small smile. "I'm better already. I'll umm…I'll see you in the morning, okay?"

Elsa nods and walks slowly back to her room, shutting the door softly behind her. Anna opens the door to her room and gathers what she needs to wash up.

When she turns on the shower's spray, she makes sure it's hot enough to burn away everything but the feeling of Elsa's arms around her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops, accidentally got a bit darker than I had planned. Next chapter will be lighter in tone, I promise.


	4. Aim for the Heart

"Hmm, I like this one," Anna says in consideration, about to tweak the volume knob on the radio before changing her mind.

In the passenger seat, Elsa stares blankly at the road stretching out in front of them. She hums in what could be agreement, but Anna doesn't think she's really listening.

"Y'know," Anna pushes on, "I really don't understand why universities don't have snow days. I mean look at this!" She gestures to the ice on the road and the wiper blades furiously fighting against a mass of snowflakes. "It looks like freaking Hoth out here and yet we're supposed to risk our lives for a checkmark on the attendance sheet."

Elsa glances at her for a moment before turning towards the window. "There are things more dangerous than driving out here," she murmurs at the window.

Anna bites her lip. Shit, Elsa's not happy.

Last night had apparently made things a bit tense between them.

While Anna's creams and ointments had mostly healed her, there's no cure for painful memories. Those are difficult to deal with whenever she came across a dead body, last night having been no exception. When she came back home, she was a wreck.

Thankfully, Elsa was there to help put her back together. Anna knew, even as she asked for that hug, that there was a chance Elsa wouldn't do it. If her behavior during the movie was any indication, she seemed like she wasn't much of a touchy-feely person. But she barely even _hesitated_ before wrapping her arms around her, which honestly made the hug all the more gratifying.

Anna hadn't gotten much sleep after that, too nervous about what she might dream about. Instead, she rolled out of bed early and drank two huge mugs of coffee while waiting for Elsa to get up. When Elsa came out of her room, she had passed Anna without acknowledging last night in any shape or form. Actually, she hardly acknowledged Anna at all.

And now here they are, partaking in the most awkward car ride in history.

By the time they've parked, Anna feels like trying to outrun the tension between them. It's just _hanging_ there—present in the tense set of Elsa's shoulders and Anna's white knuckled fists hidden in her pockets.

This is the first time she's glad Elsa's avoiding Kristoff; the two part ways when he comes into sight.

"You okay?" Kristoff asks when Anna nearly collapses against the building's wall. "Rough weekend?" He has a fading bruise around one of his eyes and a cut on his chin that could either be from a monster or a bad shaving job.

"The worst," Anna groans. "And I think I freaked Elsa out. She won't talk to me at all." Not that Anna blames her—this weekend was a bit weird, to put it extremely mildly. From an outsider's perspective it was probably downright crazy.

Kristoff squints at her in thought. "Did you give her an alibi for your injuries?"

"I just told her I fell a lot," she says with a shrug. What the hell was she supposed to say? Apparently something better, seeing as Kristoff's looking at her incredulously. "Wait, what did you tell your old roommate?"

"I said I worked at a wild animal rescue," he says like it's the most obvious thing in the world. "My job was to bring injured animals in, which is why I might sometimes come back injured or smelly."

"Wild animal rescue…" Anna echoes thoughtfully. That's a pretty good cover. And kind of ironic, seeing as they killed almost as many creatures as they relocated. "I could still tell her that, right? Like, 'I fell _at_ work, and for some stupid reason I never felt the need to tell you anything more.'" _'Because I'm a thoughtless idiot,'_ she silently tacks on.

"Jesus, you're bad at lying," Kristoff sighs. Anna doesn't even bother protesting—he's obviously right. They walk towards the classroom doors, Kristoff taking each step as carefully as possible. "I'll fix this for you, but you seriously should have told her something that made more sense."

Ever since he was sixteen, Kristoff had to become a skilled liar out of necessity—constantly explaining his emancipation and his parents' absence had molded him into someone who could spin a believable story with ease. Living with a normal roommate last year had apparently sharpened those talents even more.

Anna glowers at him. "I was too busy trying not to die to really focus on an alibi this weekend." She thinks about telling him what happened in the cave, but she holds back. Now, right before class, isn't the right time to bring it up.

The two take their usual back row seats, Anna propping her legs up on the chair in front of her. Someone sits next to her, bumping their knee against her own.

She turns to see who it is, only to be staring at Elsa. She doesn't look at Anna at all, just pulls out her notebook and readies herself for class. Even though she can't see it, Anna beams at the other woman. She doesn't know why Elsa would suddenly want to sit next to her (especially considering this weekend), but she's not going to question it.

Instead, she elbows Kristoff in the ribs and tilts her head towards Elsa. He raises an eyebrow in surprise. Leaning in, he whispers, "Just follow my lead." In a louder, casual voice he says, "Last night sucked, right?"

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Elsa still. Pretending to not see her, Anna nods. "Yeah, it was a rough one. Actually, this whole weekend sucked." Well, nothing of a lie there.

"You should know that the fox is doing fine now. Doc said she could be released back into the wild sometime in the next few weeks." He gives her a light, encouraging punch on the shoulder. "Way to go, champ."

Elsa shifts towards them, eyebrows drawn in confusion "What fox?" she asks Kristoff. There's a _want_ in the simple question, a want to finally get some answers after days of evasion from Anna.

Kristoff leans over Anna, pretending like he just now noticed the other woman. "Oh, hey Elsa. Did Anna not tell you what we do?" At Elsa's head shake, he continues, "We both work at a wild animal rescue just outside town. Last night Anna brought in an injured female fox. Turns out, she was pregnant and a bit more aggressive than usual. What else was there? A coyote on Friday, raccoon on Saturday—"

"An owl, too," Anna adds, hoping her voice isn't going to give her away. "That's what gave me the slash marks."

"Why…why wouldn't you just tell me?" Elsa asks Anna, only sparing Kristoff the slightest of glances before focusing entirely on Anna. She looks hurt, as if wondering why she hasn't earned Anna's trust about something so simple.

"I…it's hard to talk about sometimes," Anna says weakly, not really able to meet Elsa's gaze. "Sometimes you see things in the forest you don't want to." Another truth, one that would hopefully prevent Elsa from asking why she needed a hug last night. "And I actually do fall a lot," she says. "Animals aren't exactly friendly when you're trying to capture them."

"There's also confidentiality papers," Kristoff chimes in helpfully. "If the animal is popular amongst hunters, we're not supposed to talk about it."

Damn, he's good. Anna knows lying so convincingly isn't something he enjoys, but it's a skill she wishes she possessed. He's just laid down the groundwork for all future excuses she can tell involving her assignments, and did so with ease.

For her part, Elsa seems pretty convinced and also relieved (her initial assumptions about Anna were probably not very flattering). She takes in Anna with fresh eyes, re-cataloguing her injuries—the previously mysterious bruise on her arm becomes a fall in the forest, the cuts on her neck turn into an animal attack.

"One other thing," Kristoff continues, a troubling glint entering his eyes. "You should totally come to the range with us this weekend. It should be pretty fun."

Anna swings her head around to give him a questioning look. This is the first time she's heard of going to the range—she had assumed they would just hang out at home. And why is he inviting Elsa to one of the places they hone their hunting skills?

Elsa seems a bit taken aback as well. "Like…a gun range?" she asks uncertainly.

"It's mostly for archery," Anna answers obligingly. "You should come," she decides after a pause. With everything she put Elsa through, she thinks it'd be nice to spend some time with her outside the apartment. "It's really fun and I can teach you how to be the next Katniss Everdeen if you want. I'm kind of awesome with the bow," she adds in a totally modest fashion.

Elsa considers it, looking intrigued by the idea. "I suppose that sounds good," she finally says just as Weselton closes the doors and begins the long walk to his lectern.

Kristoff beams. "Great! This Saturday at one. Anna can drive you."

For the first time ever, Elsa actually levels a _smile_ at him in response before turning her attention to the professor. Huh. Maybe the two of them could get along after all. Still, the invitation was completely out of the blue. She almost wonders if Kristoff has some sinister plan up his sleeve. But when she looks at him, he just gives her an angelic smile. Anna narrows her eyes in suspicion.

Weselton taps on his lectern and clears his throat, gaining the attention of his class. "Today we will be looking at some of the core beliefs of constructivism and how they fit into international relations…" he begins, already settling into a monotonous drone.

Anna sighs deeply, staring at the blank paper in front of her. She is suddenly _not_ in the mood for this class. She rubs at her eyes, hoping she can stay awake for the class period. The coffee she had earlier has already burned up into nothing and she's back to being tired. Weselton's voice certainly isn't helping either. At least she was apparently wrong about there being a quiz.

When she starts nodding off somewhere around talk of regulative versus constitutive rules, she knows she's in trouble. Judging by the way Elsa is completely focused on the professor, only looking between him and her notes, she doesn't notice Anna's problem. Usually, she and Kristoff have a complex system of poking each other when one of them begins falling asleep in class. But today Kristoff is just as tired as she is, having been equally busy during the full moon. So when her head slumps onto his shoulder he doesn't move, just murmurs tiredly.

Before she knows it, she's jerking awake to a sound she dreads—Weselton's nasally voice directed at her. For once, he left his lectern for the rare opportunity of an up close and personal reprimand. He's standing right next to Elsa, practically leaning over her to yell at her and Kristoff.

"—and you two are the most disrespectful students I have ever had! You should be embarrassed and ashamed of yourselves. Since you are so bored by the material, perhaps you would like to enlighten the class on a more interesting subject?" He's in fine form today, and Anna's glad she missed the beginning of this scolding. "Or is it that you're deliberately trying to fail my class?"

"No, sir," Anna mumbles. She nudges Kristoff, hoping to wake him up. He blinks slowly in Weselton's direction, not yet conscious enough to know he's in trouble.

Anna's words don't seem to calm the professor down any. Instead, he gets even redder, rearing up for another bout. His hand slaps against Elsa's chair back, causing her to lean in towards Anna. "I don't know what exactly you two were _up to_ this weekend," he says, full of innuendo that makes Anna squirm. "But there are consequences for your actions." At this point he's almost pressing into Elsa's leg, straining to get his face into Anna's personal space. "I demand that you both come to the front of the class and—"

The giant doors of the room _bang_ against the walls, letting in a huge flurry of snow. Weselton is right in the center of the powerful breeze, which has a most unexpected result.

In addition to becoming completely covered in snow, the top part of Weselton's hair has flown off completely, revealing to the entire class a particularly shiny, bald head. Weselton himself looks stunned, staring at Kristoff, Elsa, and her as if trying to comprehend what just happened.

Anna turns her lips inwards in an attempt to not laugh. Next to her, Kristoff (who is now alert), breaks the shocked silence in the room by succumbing to a coughing fit that sounds almost gleeful.

"You…" Anna starts, trying to sound completely serious. "You should really make sure to close the doors properly, Professor." Next to her, Kristoff's coughing reaches violent levels. Someone near the front of the class snickers, causing a few people around him to do so as well.

Weselton's nostrils flare but instead of continuing his scolding, he looks around for his toupee. The silver hair piece must be surprisingly aerodynamic, having landed near his lectern at the front of the room.

He makes his walk of shame as quickly as his short legs can take him, snatching the toupee off the ground and squashing it back onto his head. Another round of giggles erupt at the action. The professor stiffens, gazing at his students with a caustic expression. "Class…is dismissed for the day," he says in a voice straining to sound composed.

The students look at each other in surprise but quickly pack up in case he changes his mind. Weselton's eyes stay locked on Anna and her friends as they leave, gaze nearly lethal.

Anna doesn't bother being intimidated by the look since she and everyone else in attendance now have prime blackmail material on their professor. Once she's outside she taps Elsa on the shoulder, grinning broadly. "That was _awesome_. The timing seriously couldn't have been better. Mother Nature obviously hates him just as much as we do."

Elsa turns to look at her, and Anna sees that she doesn't seem as amused as everyone else. Her own smile is strained and tight-lipped. "Yeah, it was funny," she answers in a hollow tone. She wraps her arms around her midsection and trudges on, Anna having to quicken her step to keep up. When she realizes Anna's trying to follow her, she says, "Look, I have to go. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Oh." Anna stops walking, and Elsa continues on without looking back. Is Elsa mad that she was caught sleeping? "Alright then," she says mostly to herself.

She's not by herself for long though—Kristoff slings an arm around her shoulders, the familiar warmth of his body pressing into her side. He's still chortling, the sound bringing out a laugh of Anna's own.

"Best class ever," he nearly sings, raising his free hand over his head in victory. "Getting screamed at was definitely worth it. I must say, I always suspected the guy had a wig or something. That hair was far too luxurious to be real."

Anna tries to recover from her laughter, only to relapse once a new thought comes to her. "Oh god," she gasps, "he is going to seriously _hate_ us now. He looked like he was staring daggers into us when we left." Hopefully poor Elsa won't be guilty by association, though his menacing glare was also pointed at her.

"Ahh, forget about that. As long as we stay near the doors, he'll be too scared to mess with us again." An idea lights up his face. "Hey, since we have some free time, let's get some food before we split up. It'll be on me."

"How could I possibly turn that down?" Anna asks, already forming plans on what to eat.

* * *

The rest of the week goes by relatively smoothly. Weselton, as it turns out, does not seem to be planning her and Kristoff's untimely deaths. However during lectures he'll randomly pause to snap his eyes in their direction, as if thinking they were responsible for the doors blowing open. Elsa continues to sit with them despite it putting her in Weselton's range of vision.

Elsa herself seems to have warmed up to her again, though Anna catches her stealing glances at her pager now and again as if wondering when it will whisk her away. Thankfully, the only cases Anna has that week are two small relocations. She takes extra care not to injury herself since she had grown to hate how Elsa's face would twist with worry whenever she came through the door all banged up.

By Saturday morning, Anna is completely injury-free and ready to take out some inanimate targets. She's poking absentmindedly at her cereal and tapping her foot to some made up tune in her head when Elsa steps out of her bedroom. Anna drags her attention away from her Count Chocula box and towards a fully dressed Elsa.

The other woman is giving her a considering look, taking in Anna's striped pajama bottoms and plain gray thermal shirt. When her eyes travel past Anna's face and follow the curve of a particularly large cowlick on Anna's head, her lips twitch in amusement.

Anna glowers half-heartedly back at her. "Not everyone looks like a model when they wake up," she grumbles, a hand coming up to tame the cowlick into submission. "Judge my bedhead further and I won't teach you how to shoot a bow," she says around a mouthful of cereal. The threat is nullified when her cowlick springs back up and Elsa has to bite her lip to keep from smiling. Anna gives her a goofy grin of her own, knowing her hair is pretty crazy first thing in the morning.

"Do you go shooting often?" Elsa asks as she makes some toast. She's been throwing questions about the archery range for a few days now. Anna thinks she might be nervous about stepping out of her comfort zone—Anna knows the other woman isn't really into sports of any kind.

"I actually haven't been in a while," Anna says. She tips her bowl into her mouth to drink the chocolate milk. "It's a pretty nice place though. And if you don't like it, I have no problem driving you back here."

Elsa gives her a relieved smile. "Thank you. I think I'll have a good time. I've just never," she pantomimes pulling back and releasing a bow string, "before". She quickly lowers her arms, suddenly self-conscious of her display.

Holy crap, her roommate's adorable. "That'll be no problem at all," Anna says confidently. "I've been doing it for years. You'll be in good hands."

* * *

Tuning out the other archers around them, Anna places her hand on Elsa's waist. "You'll want to stand a bit more sideways," she says, gently nudging her into the correct position. "Good."

Even though she hasn't done much shooting yet, Elsa's already pink in the face. "Anything else?" she asks, voice a little shaky.

Anna takes a step back and watches as Elsa draws her bow back. "Just make sure you're anchoring the arrow to the same spot on your face each time you shoot. I use the corner of my mouth, some people use their chins or cheeks. It depends on the person." She taps Elsa's elbow. "Make sure the shooting arm isn't drooping and you're good to go."

Elsa nods, concentration sharpening. She focuses on the target twenty yards away and releases her arrow. It hits just left of the bullseye. Elsa lowers the bow, an excited smile lighting up her face.

"Yes!" Anna crows, giving her a high five.

Despite her initial hesitance, Elsa seems to be having a good time. She's eager to learn and doesn't get the slightest bit huffy whenever Anna corrects her on something. Since Anna is very much a hands-on person, she's glad to see that her touch doesn't seem to be bothering Elsa.

Kristoff, goofing around on the other end of the range, has been giving the two of them space while she teaches Elsa with one of the rented recurves. While he's quite good at archery, he's more interested in his ice axes or the occasional throwing knife. The range has private rooms where he could practice with those weapons if he wanted to, but instead he stays on the same range as the other two.

Once Elsa feels more comfortable with her bow, Anna picks her own one up and takes the target next to her. Anna's bow is a small, black compound with no extra goodies on it besides a snub-nosed stabilizer and a fairly new sight. She sinks arrow after arrow in the center of her target, mind slowly going blank at the familiar motions. When she's not fighting for her life or trying to take down creatures, archery is something that helps her unwind.

Once she runs out of arrows, she glances at Elsa's target. The other woman's stayed almost entirely in the center region, one arrow looking like it might be a bullseye. Anna grins when she sees the same fierce look of concentration still on her face.

"Y'know, you could have told me you'd done this before," she says teasingly after Elsa fires her last arrow. "It would have saved you from my remedial lessons."

Elsa dabs at her forehead with the back of her hand and gives her a bashful smile. "Maybe I'm only good _because_ of your lessons," she points out in a voice that's just as teasing.

Anna jokingly tips her head in acknowledgement of her great skills. This is the happiest she's seen her roommate in the last week and she finds it hard to look away from the smile on Elsa's face—the expression is still relatively rare and seeing it in full because of something she's done…it makes her feel good.

Kristoff finally ambles his way over and nods in approval at Elsa. "Looks like Anna is turning you into some kind of wunderkind. Having a good time?"

"Yeah, thanks for inviting me," Elsa says easily. Making sure the other archers have stopped shooting, she goes to collect her arrows.

Anna and Kristoff walk slowly behind her, Kristoff lowering his voice to ask, "So…what do you think?"

Anna raises an eyebrow. "About what?"

He looks at her like she's an idiot. "About _Elsa_ ," he says slowly.

"Oh," Anna shrugs. "She's surprisingly good for a first timer. I think she could be pretty kick-ass if she had a decent bow."

Kristoff puts a palm to his forehead. "Wow. Just wow, Anna." With that, he goes back to his corner target, muttering under his breath.

What is up with him today? Even though he's been giving her and Elsa plenty of space, he keeps stealing glances at the two of them, a barely contained smirk on his face. Is he just glad that Elsa seems to be tolerating him now? Knowing him, it's probably something else.

Anna puts aside her curiosity and rejoins Elsa. "After a few more shots here, do you want to check out the animal range? It's a bit more interesting than shooting at a circle."

Unexpectedly, Elsa's face falls. "Oh, do you hunt?" She looks disapproving that Anna might be capable of harming anything cute and fluffy.

"Umm…no," Anna answers after a small hesitation. "I don't hunt animals." _Not normal ones, anyways._

"Good," Elsa says, relieved. "I don't like the idea of animals being killed for fun."

Anna's lips twitch. "So you really are a softie, aren't you? Beneath that sarcastic and huffy exterior is a gooey marshmallow center."

The look on Elsa's face is priceless—her eyes go big and her already pink cheeks flush even more. "Th-that's not true!" she says, voice sounding strangled. "I just don't like dead things, that's all."

That sobers Anna up slightly. "Yeah, I don't think anyone does." _Aaand_ now her thoughts are turning dark. But before she can even frown, she spots a familiar man entering the range. "Shit," she growls. Why the hell is _he_ here?

Elsa follows her gaze. "What's the matter?" she asks, seemingly not noticing the giant douche starting to walk towards them.

Anna twirls Elsa around, staring intently into her eyes. "Okay, here's what will happen. The guy that just walked in, the one with the reddish hair, he's going to hit on you." Elsa opens her mouth to protest but Anna runs a clinical eye up and down Elsa's figure, making the other woman fidget and remain silent. "He's definitely going to say something about your eyes," Anna predicts, "possibly your shirt too. And extra points if he asks you how often you exercise."

"Anna, what—"

"Hi, ladies. Is it alright if I shoot here?" a pleasant voice asks.

She looks behind Elsa's shoulder and sees Hans, looking perfectly nice in a collared shirt and a pair of slacks (as if he's at a _dinner party_ instead of an archery range). "It's a free country, isn't it?" Anna answers through gritted teeth.

He stands in the empty spot next to Elsa and sets his equipment down, taking extra time to roll up his sleeves and slowly removes his bow and arrows from his bag. Once he's ready to shoot, he glances at Elsa like he's seeing her for the first time.

"Hi," he says, lowering his bow and giving her a charming smile. "I'm Hans." He looks at her rented equipment and asks, "Is this your first time shooting here?"

Elsa is wary (good for her), and gives him only the slightest of nods. She nocks her arrow, aims, and releases it, trying to ignore how Hans is still staring at her. She hits close to the bullseye and gives Anna another grin, which she can't help but return.

"You're very good for a first-timer," Hans says, still not having shot a single arrow. His eyes wander across her body. "And I can't help but notice your…eyes, such a pretty color."

Elsa's grin is wiped off her face and she gives him a look that says, ' _Get the hell away from me'_. Without bothering to respond, she goes back to shooting. Anna tries to ignore their interaction, since she _knows_ Hans is only doing this to get a rise out of her, but she's finding it hard to focus on her own target.

Hans goes on despite Elsa clearly not being interested. "What kind of exercise do you do? Even if you're new to archery, you seem like someone who would take part in other physical activities."

Anna resists the urge to gag. God, his pickup lines have really deteriorated since the last time she saw him. It's like he's not even trying. Elsa continues to ignore him, but now a grimace is firmly in place. Her next arrow hits the outermost ring and she curses under her breath.

"I could give you some tips if you'd like," Hans offers, _finally_ picking up his bow and aiming it downrange. His arrow hits the bullseye and he smirks. "I'm quite experienced."

"Oh, will you just _shut up_ ," Anna says, unable to take any more of his bullshit. "Get away from her so we can go back to having fun."

"But you told me I could practice here," he says, not budging. In a slightly nastier voice he adds, "You always were so indecisive, weren't you Anna?"

"And you were always a scumbag," Anna retorts. She's disappointed that she ever fell for him in the first place, unable to see what was underneath that handsome face until it was too late.

Elsa looks between the two of them and realization comes across her face. "Should I leave you two alone?" she asks, already stepping away so she's not in the middle of a potential argument.

Anna's hand reaches out to grab Elsa's arm. "Do _not_ leave me alone with him," she warns. "I might do something unfortunate with an arrow if you do."

Elsa swallows hard but stands supportively next to her. Hans narrows his eyes at the display. "That's too bad," he says to Elsa. "We could have had some fun together."

Anna feels goosebumps run over her skin despite the fact she's getting worked up. "Seriously, stop trying to poach my friends—it's pathetic and not jealousy-inducing in any way." First it had been Merida, then Belle. Now Elsa is caught in the fallout of a nasty breakup. It's weird that Hans would actually think hitting on her friends would stir up romantic feelings in her. The only thing it stirs up is the desire to break his pretty face in.

"It's not my intention to make you jealous," he says in an amicable tone. "I assumed you would be latched onto somebody else by now anyways."

Anna clenches her jaw. So they've already gotten to the 'hurling passive-aggressive insults at each other' phase. Alright, she can roll with this. "Actually, I've been taking a break from relationships. My last boyfriend was a bit of a dick, truth be told." Becoming aware of the fact that she's still clinging to Elsa's arm, she let's go in case Elsa wants to run away. From the look on her face, it's a very real possibility.

"Is that so?" Hans murmurs thoughtfully. "Because my last girlfriend was a needy little thing, and was always going on about how well she knew me even after we had just met. It was suffocating."

And yep, there goes Elsa. Not that Anna blames her at all; she's sick of fighting Hans every time they see each other but she can't stop. It's like there's some nasty compulsion in her that makes her sink down to his level.

By the time Elsa comes back, Kristoff firmly in tow, she and Hans have reached a new line of attack. "I've heard your brothers are doing well for themselves. I'm not too surprised; they always did surpass you in every way." The truth always stings the most—Hans' siblings _were_ more successful than him, at least when it came to their various positions in the Guild.

Hans flushes. "And how is your family doing?" he asks softly. "Last I heard, your father had traded snow for bayous." Damn him. He knows that particular barb is too sharp even for this conversation.

What makes it worse is that he apparently knows more about her dad's whereabouts than she does (not that she ever tried contacting him after that first month. Not that she really cares where he is). Anna's free hand tightens into a fist and before she can do something she'll regret, Kristoff comes to stand between them. "I think it's time for you to leave," he directs towards Hans.

"Or what, will your puppy come and bite me?" Hans always did dislike Sven, probably because the dog growled at him every time they occupied the same space.

Kristoff's eyes become unfocused and he smirks. "He would be up for it, I assure you."

Anna takes a calming breath and shakes her head. "Actually, maybe we should go. We can do a late lunch at Tiana's." She doesn't want to be anywhere near Hans, especially when she has a weapon in her hands. They had practiced enough for the time being anyways.

Elsa, having been silent since Hans came over, finally speaks up. "I'd like that," she says quietly, probably beyond relieved at the chance to get away from Hans and Anna's bickering.

Anna doesn't bother giving Hans so much as another glance as she starts to pack up. Soon, the three of them are in the range's parking lot, tying their scarves and pulling on their gloves. Kristoff splits from them to meet at the restaurant, driving slowly out of the icy lot.

Before Elsa has the chance to get into the passenger seat, Anna tugs on her jacket to get her attention. Elsa straightens up, scarf slipping to expose a segment of smooth skin. "I'm really sorry you had to see that," Anna says, shame already starting to settle in her stomach. Being around Hans post-breakup turns her into someone she isn't proud of.

Elsa takes a step towards her and raises her arm, and Anna wonders if she's going to hug her again. Instead, Elsa simply brushes the hair out of one of Anna's eyes and tucks it under her beanie. The unexpected action provokes a flustered smile out of Anna.

"And I'm sorry you used to date him," Elsa says wryly.

Anna laughs, feeling a bit lighter. She gets into the car and starts the ignition, hoping her heater will come on before they reach Tiana's. "Yeah, me too. We're currently in the 'I completely hate your guts' phase of our breakup. I highly doubt we'll manage to move from that point." She can't imagine actually being _civil_ to him, even when they're both old and wrinkly.

"Can I…what happened between you two?" Elsa asks haltingly a few minutes into the drive. She backpedals immediately. "I'm sorry, that's rude of me."

"No, it's okay," Anna assures her. "It was a while ago." She takes a deep breath and goes, "He cheated on me. Cheated and then tried to turn it around on me like it was my fault." _'We're both so busy, we hardly see each other anymore…it was the alcohol, I swear. If you were there I wouldn't have done it.'_ She remembers each of his awful excuses, followed by his defensive insults. _'It's not like this was going to end up in marriage or anything…You're too sensitive, it was only one time.'_

But Anna was not her mother—she broke up with Hans soon after, refusing to give him another chance…or another opportunity to cheat. Ever since, they'd been on less than pleasant terms.

Seeming to sense Anna's growing unhappiness, Elsa puts a comforting hand over Anna's gloved one. "I've…never been in a relationship," she says, coloring at the confession. "I-I mean, I've gone on dates before, that kind of stuff, but I've never really felt like… _committing_ to someone until—" She pauses and releases Anna's hand. "I don't really know where I'm going with this. Just…I want you to know that I'm really sorry you had to go through that. Next time I see that guy, I'll punch him for you."

Anna can't help but laugh at the earnestness in Elsa's voice. Maybe it's because she was so sparse with them earlier, but Anna can't help but feel lighter whenever Elsa touches her. It's like she has some kind of emotional-healing magic at her fingertips.

"I don't think that will be necessary," Anna says. "But I'll definitely hold you to that."

They stay silent for the rest of the ride. Despite being present when Hans spoke about her dad, Elsa doesn't ask her about that particular topic, something that greatly relieves Anna. By the time they pull into Tiana's, Anna feels that her mood has improved by a wide margin.

Kristoff is already sitting at their favorite table—the one in the front corner near the window. It's nearly surrounded with potted plants, giving those sitting there a sense of privacy. Anna settles in next to Kristoff, Elsa taking the cushioned seat across from them.

Tiana herself soon comes over to take their orders, yellow apron spattered with a colorful array of spices. "What can I get you guys, the usual?" she asks warmly. All three of them nod in sync and Tiana writes down what is presumably three big bowls of her amazing jambalaya.

Once she leaves, Kristoff puts his elbows on the table and leans forward. "So besides the very end, did you have a good time, Elsa?" he asks, playing around with the condiments on the table to keep his hands busy.

Elsa is quick to answer, "Yeah, it was really fun. It'd be nice to do it again sometime." Even though her words are directed towards Kristoff, her eyes are on Anna.

"Sure thing!" he grins. "We'll just have to make sure Douchebag Extraordinaire isn't around next time."

Anna glares at Kristoff. _Thanks for bringing_ him _into the conversation_. They lapse into a semi-awkward silence, only Kristoff looking like he's enjoying himself. Their beverages—a water for Elsa and a local IPA each for Kristoff and Anna—are quick to arrive.

Right when things feel like they're lightening up, Kristoff just has to ask Anna, "So, do you think you might be ready for another relationship?" He unsuccessfully hides a grin behind the brim of his beer at the expression on her face.

What the hell. Is he intentionally trying to annoy her? But she decides to take the question seriously, since she hasn't asked herself that in a while. After wiping off some of the condensation gathering on her own bottle, she takes a thoughtful sip. "I don't know. I guess I'd be up for the idea if someone comes along. I'm not going put up a dating profile or anything, but I guess it might be nice to be with someone." The one problem being that she only dates people from the Guild, which limits her options significantly. But to her it's better that her significant other doesn't have to be lied to about such a large part of her life.

Across the table, Elsa is listening intently. She averts her gaze when Anna looks over in her direction.

Kristoff nods, looking encouraged. "I think you should consider dating women. You know, expand your horizons a bit."

Elsa chokes on her water, a hand coming up to cover her mouth as she tries to dislodge the liquid from her throat.

"You okay?" Anna asks in concern. Elsa's eyes are nearly watering but it seems she can breathe like she's supposed to. At a hand-wave from Elsa, she turns back to Kristoff. "Are you being serious right now?" Kristoff schools his expression to look perfectly sincere. Anna decides to answer despite her annoyance at his weird line of questioning. "I haven't really thought much about being with a woman _that way_ , but I don't see what the big deal would be with doing so."

Anna's a fairly liberal girl and even if she's never gone on a date with someone of the same sex, it's certainly something she's thought about on more than one occasion. She thinks of Esmeralda, the extraordinarily pretty girl in her freshman dance class, and smirks when she remembers how mesmerizing she was when she moved her hips. Oh yeah, Anna definitely doesn't have a problem thinking about women romantically.

Still, she would rather get off this subject before Kristoff decides to ask any other personal questions. She nods towards the water in Elsa's hands. "Do you drink alcohol?"

Elsa finishes taking a cautious sip and replies, "Not really. It kind of lost its appeal when I turned twenty-two."

"You're a year older than us?" Kristoff asks, surprised. "I thought we were in the same year."

"Oh, I'm a junior too," Elsa says. She sinks a little lower into her seat when she adds, "I was homeschooled until I was sixteen. I had to catch up on some stuff and ended up a year behind in school."

Huh, homeschooled. That might explain some of Elsa's difficulties in dealing with other people. Anna can't imagine how she would turn out if she weren't around those her own age. It would also explain her romantic inexperience—Anna would have thought the other woman would be drowning in guys (hell, girls too) offering to take her out.

The conversation settles into less personal territory soon after—they discuss their favorite movies, with Anna acting out the climactic scene from _The Empire Strikes Back_ much to the others' amusement.

By the time their food arrives, Kristoff is clutching at Anna's arm, pretending she's the Rose to his Jack. Tiana doesn't even bother looking surprised by their antics, simply sliding their bowls in front of them with well-practiced ease.

Anna notices that even while the other woman eats, Elsa has a completely unselfconscious smile on her face, as if not even aware she's doing it. Suddenly, the jambalaya seems a bit spicier than usual and Anna rubs at the heat in her chest.

She and Elsa part ways with Kristoff a while later and head back to their apartment. When Anna parks the car near their building, she finds that she doesn't want the day to be over yet. So as she unbuckles her seatbelt, she turns to Elsa with an idea in her head.

"I know this sounds really weird but...would you wanna build a snowman with me? We have so much snow around and the only thing I've done is walk in it." And she would totally be up for sledding later, but baby steps need to be taken.

She expects Elsa to comment on how childish her request is, maybe teasingly remind her that they're in _college_ , not elementary school.

Instead, Elsa beams at her, hands rubbing together in anticipation.

"I'd love to."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Interesting fact: one of my main notes for this chapter was 'Kristoff is Elsa's secret wingman'. Dude knows what's up. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, next one will take place around ~Halloween~ and involve a creature from Japanese mythology.


	5. You Are A Fever

"A party?" Elsa repeats, turning the idea over in her head. She and Anna are sitting at the kitchen table, finishing their breakfasts and watching fat flakes of snow drift past the window.

"Well, maybe not a 'party'," Anna quickly amends after taking a swig of orange juice. "More like a 'get together' or a 'gathering'. Maybe an 'assemblage'?" She's not sure if that last one is a word, but it sounds pretty legit. She's more concerned with the half-flipped collar of Elsa's peacoat. The jacket looks great on her, but the collar needs to be _even,_ dammit.

"I think that's more than enough adjectives," Elsa responds dryly. Her eyebrows draw in thought. "But you really want to have a Halloween…assemblage…here?"

Anna nods. "Nothing too crazy, just some people, a little alcohol, maybe a scary movie."

Elsa is still looking unsure, so Anna adds, "I could do the party at Kristoff's instead." He was always down for a get together at his place, probably due to the fact that his only frequent visitor is Anna.

"No," Elsa says, abruptly changing her mind. She shifts in her chair, part of her jacket's collar bobbing with the motion. "Our place is fine."

_Our place_. The words make Anna grin. "Thanks. Feel free to bring some people if you'd like. Friends, a date, whoever."

"Oh, I'm not seeing anyone," Elsa says dismissively. At Anna's raised eyebrow, she stutters, "I-I mean I'm just going to ask Rapunzel if she wants to come." She stands up with more enthusiasm than a Wednesday morning deserves. "We should probably get going, right?"

Anna shoves the rest of her toast into her mouth and nods. She follows Elsa to the door but stops her before they step outside. "Wait," she demands after her mouth is empty.

She reaches up towards Elsa's collar. Grasping both ends, she smooths the problem side down until she's happy with its placement. "There," she says in satisfaction, "perfect."

Elsa, stiff with surprise, takes a moment to find her voice. "Umm…thanks?"

Realizing she's still holding onto the jacket (and therefore keeping Elsa extremely close to her), Anna lets go as if it's scorching hot. "Sorry! It was just bothering me. I didn't mean to invade your space and just start _touching_ you. I know you don't like that, so I guess I wasn't thinking and—"

Elsa holds out a silencing hand, stopping the jumble of words coming out of Anna's mouth. Almost smirking, she flips the collar back up. "Is it still bothering you?"

" _Yes_ ," Anna replies, playfully glaring at her. She's relieved that Elsa has decided to joke around with her instead of shrinking away (something that would have happened just a few weeks ago). She snatches the collar again and pats it down with a little more force than the first time.

Laughing, Elsa takes ahold of Anna's forearms before Anna can lower them. The move brings the two closer together. "You know, something's been bugging me as well." Elsa's voice is quiet and Anna is near enough to smell the Earl Grey she just finished.

"Y-yeah?" Anna asks. For some reason, it's become a bit harder than usual to breathe.

Elsa's gaze drops away from Anna's eyes to somewhere lower. "Yeah."

Anna feels a tugging around her neck and looks down to find her scarf being skillfully knotted by Elsa's quick fingers. Giving it one last pull, Elsa nods firmly and steps back to admire the final product. "My work here is done," she says, echoing Anna's earlier pleased tone.

"Huh," Anna says dumbly. What do you know, her scarf _does_ look better like that. "Touché."

Her roommate slips out the door before Anna can wonder when Elsa got so comfortable around her. After locking up, she hurries to catch up with Elsa. They walk right past the snowman they made last weekend, the one they mutually agreed to name 'Olaf'. Miraculously, Olaf hasn't melted despite his proximity to the road, which had reduced everything around him to slush.

Anna waves goodbye to the snowman before starting her car and carefully navigating the rarely-plowed street of the apartment complex.

During the first commercial break on the radio, Anna sees Elsa turn towards her in the passenger seat. "It's okay," she says with a hint of resolve. Fingers rake nervously through her blonde hair.

Anna shrugs questioningly without taking her eyes off the road. "What is?" It's unlike Elsa to randomly blurt things out like this.

Elsa takes a breath. "Earlier…you were apologizing for touching me. I wanted to say…I mean—" The car comes to a slow stop at a light and Anna glances over at Elsa, an encouraging smile on her face.

Elsa returns the smile with a small one of her own. "It's okay," she starts again, "if you touch me. It's fine." She looks away as soon as she says it, though the edge of an ice-blue eye seems to be peeking at Anna, waiting for her reaction.

Oh.

Anna blinks in surprise. _That_ certainly wasn't what she expected Elsa to say. Still, it's good to know that the roommate who went from sitting as far away from her as possible is now a friend she can touch without causing offense to.

"Thanks," Anna grins, her attention going back to the road. "I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

Anna and Kristoff didn't expect to be anywhere near the forest on Halloween. Yet here they are, trudging through snow and over fallen branches under the gray afternoon sky. The Guild had given them (and every other hunter in the area) word that the scope of their territory would be expanded, in some places up to eight miles.

The two, accompanied by Sven, had decided to familiarize themselves with the new border and later add the coordinates to the maps hanging in their bedrooms. It also gave them a good excuse to wander through the trees without having to worry about taking down any creatures. Even with all of its ancient trees and hidden paths, Anna sometimes forgot to appreciate the beauty of the forest.

Much to her surprise, Elsa had asked to tag along with them, saying that she wanted to see Anna's workplace for herself. Due to Kristoff, she was under the impression they were just out for a long recreational walk.

Anna has no problem with her inclusion—she's been itching for the other woman's company outside the apartment since they went to the archery range. Elsa somehow seemed to be a lighter and happier person the more time they spent together, like she was slowly letting go of the surly defenses and insecurities that had been set in place long before she met Anna. The changes were oddly fulfilling to witness.

Kristoff tugs on Anna's jacket, bringing her back to reality. "…I was talking about my favorite Halloween costume," he says, an exaggerated amount of annoyance in his voice at her inattention.

Anna rolls her eyes. "I already know what it is; I went trick-or-treating _with_ you when we were ten." Kristoff has the gall to look skeptical so Anna continues, "It was the one where you dressed as Santa Claus and dragged Sven around as Prancer or Dasher or one of those reindeers." It had been Sven's very first Halloween and Kristoff had made the sacrifice of forgoing candy in order to carry the puppy around in his arms all night.

Kristoff nods, mollified. "Just checking. So what was your favorite costume, Elsa?" he asks over his shoulder. He stops and turns around when there's no answer. "Oh, oops."

He and Anna have forgotten just how difficult it is to navigate the forest's many obstacles. Elsa is a few paces behind them, struggling with her gloved hands to clamber over a fallen tree. Anna immediately backtracks and puts her hand out for Elsa grab. She takes it gratefully and is soon on the other side, only a little breathless. Squeezing Anna's hand in thanks before releasing it, she hurries to catch up with Kristoff.

"I was a princess when I was eight," she answers Kristoff's earlier question as if there hadn't been a lull in the conversation. Her smile has a touch of sadness when she says, "My mom made me this beautiful blue dress. She was really good at sewing and used to make all my costumes, whether it was for Halloween or tea parties with Rapunzel."

Anna doesn't mean to, but she snorts at the thought of the darkly-clad, awkward Elsa as a _princess_ , of all things. It just doesn't compute.

Elsa glares at the sound, heat rising to her cheeks. "Is there a problem with that, roommate?" she asks in a voice that's probably supposed to be threatening. Her hand twitches and Anna wonders if she wants to throw a snowball at her.

"Oh, no. I promise," Anna says, attempting to look contrite. "I just thought it would be much more fitting for you to be a queen, not a princess. That's all."

Elsa aims her nose into the air. "Of course you thought that." When she levels her gaze to Anna, there's a serious expression on her face that she's trying hard to maintain. "I do possess many royal qualities, after all."

"That's very true," Anna says eagerly, continuing the charade. "Like the fact that you can't _bear_ to switch your laundry until it needs to be re-spun, or that you take showers the length of a Lord of the Rings movie, oh, and you also—"

"That's enough, peasant," Elsa cuts her off. She bites the inside of her mouth to keep from smiling. But unable to keep character, she breaks down and mock-glares at Anna. "I didn't realize laziness and enjoying a warm shower were qualities of a queen."

"As a wildlife major who has completed only two history classes, I can assure you that those are the qualities of the very _best_ queens," Anna says solemnly.

Their fun ends when Elsa's boot gets caught on an unseen root and she stumbles forward. She's quick to catch herself against a nearby tree but the action returns them to their surroundings. Anna had very nearly forgotten that Kristoff and Sven were even with them.

To cover her embarrassment, Elsa says, "I honestly thought you would be the clumsy one, not me. Didn't you say that you could," she puts up air quotes, "'barely walk in a straight line without getting hurt'?"

"Good memory," Anna mutters under her breath. She actually forgot she's supposed to be some kind of klutz, and has practically been gliding through the forest compared to Elsa. She imagines that if she pretends to be clumsy, it would come off looking terribly fake. _Why can't I think of good lies to tell_? she despairs.

Kristoff comes to the rescue in a rather annoying way—before she knows it, Sven starts a complex series of loops between her legs, causing her to trip over her feet to avoid stepping on him. "Seriously?!—" she starts in annoyance before tumbling headlong into Elsa. The blonde is unprepared for Anna's sudden change in direction towards her, and can do nothing but brace herself for impact.

The two land in a pile of snow, Anna trying valiantly not to fall completely on top of Elsa and knock the wind out of her. She manages to brace her hands on either side of Elsa's head, supporting most of her weight. Grinning in relief, she looks down at Elsa.

Her blonde hair is splayed out against the snow, looking as if it's been purposefully arranged to do so. Elsa's eyes are as big as she's ever seen them and there's a look in them that's both strange and all-consuming. Even through all the layers of clothing, Anna swears she can feel Elsa's heart beat against her own chest. Unnerved by the stillness between them, Anna tries to get up as quickly as she can, only to realize her legs are entangled with Elsa's. There's a soft, surprised intake of breath from Elsa when Anna's hips move upwards to get off her.

Anna quickly stands, head already feeling clearer. She shoots Kristoff a venomous look and he shrugs helplessly (though the smile on his face speaks volumes of his guilt). "I can't control Sven. He does what he wants."

"Sure he does," Anna huffs. Belatedly, she realizes her face is flushed.

Elsa is soon to get up as well, though she's a bit unsteady on her feet. "So…" she coughs, eyes averted. "How about you, Anna? Favorite costume?"

"Oh," Anna says, taken more off-guard than she should be by the question. Her parents, both being Level One hunters, were a bit touchy when it came to Halloween. Instead of being a werewolf, zombie, or vampire (creatures they were very familiar with hunting), she tended to go as a different famous person each year. "Probably Abraham Lincoln," she decides. " _Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure_ was my favorite movie that year. Instead of saying 'trick-or-treat' for candy, I would say 'party on, dudes!'" She plays the air guitar for a second to hammer the point home.

The unexpected answer startles a laugh out of Elsa. "You…you really went as _Lincoln_?" she asks. "You had the beard and top hat too?"

"Of course," Anna scoffs. "What do you take me for, an amateur? I was dressed like a president going to see half of a play."

Kristoff chuckles. "Oh, you're bad." He pauses for a moment. "Had we already met by that point? The furthest costume back I can remember is Rosie the Riveter."

"I honestly have no idea," Anna confesses. "Everything kind of blurred together after a while, costumes included."

"You two have known each other since childhood?" Elsa asks in something close to awe.

Anna wonders why that surprises her before recalling that Elsa was homeschooled for most of her formative years. Even now, Elsa's never spoken of anyone besides her cousin as a friend.

Kristoff nods. "Our parents were friends and introduced us sometime during elementary school. They wanted us to all practice together so we could learn to—" he abruptly cuts himself off, looking stunned by what he almost said.

Anna sucks in a surprised breath. She's never seen Kristoff so close to spilling any sort of crucial information. Being in the forest with her on Guild business must've made him forget Elsa is not part of the same world as they are.

Thankfully, Elsa doesn't notice the odd stopping place in the conversation or push the subject further—she's concentrating very hard on keeping her feet beneath her as they trod over a small and completely frozen-over creek.

Anna and Kristoff glance at each other in relief, though Anna is quick to mutter a curse in his direction. In retaliation, Kristoff's eyes get a distant look in them—the telltale sign that he and Sven are communicating.

Anna backs away from both of them, hands going up in a placating manner. "That really isn't necessary—"

But Sven is already bounding towards her. Before she can register what happened, she's already lying on the ground with the dog pressing warm kisses to her face. Distantly, she can hear Elsa and Kristoff laughing at the scene.

She hauls herself up and just barely refrains from shooting the bird at Kristoff. Her annoyance dissipates when she sees how happy Elsa looks in their company.

"I'm staying back here with Elsa," she says staunchly to Kristoff. "I don't seem to have nearly as many problems with her." He waves her away good-naturedly and continues on walking.

Elsa positively _beams_ at the statement, and Anna thinks something good may have come from Kristoff's jackassery after all.

* * *

Once Kristoff deems they've spent enough time in the great outdoors for the day, they head to the closest liquor store. Anna and Elsa's place would be completely dry if it weren't for the Bailey's Anna sometimes likes to put in her hot chocolate.

"…It's because she's a lightweight," Kristoff is in the middle of informing Elsa as he puts a bottle of rum into his basket. "She can get tipsy just from _looking_ at something alcoholic."

"Okay, that clearly isn't true," Anna protests, spreading her arms wide to remind him where they are. "Though yes," she addresses Elsa with a grimace, "I am tragically easy to get drunk. A drink with a meal is fine, but parties make my liver hate me." The story was always the same—one drink led to another, which led to another…and then _boom_! Instant hangover the next morning.

"Look on the bright side; at least you're a cheap date," Kristoff quips. Totally expecting the slap on the arm he receives, he goes on, "Anna gets touchy when she's inebriated, bossy too. Don't be surprised if she ends up in your bed, Elsa."

Elsa almost knocks over a Captain Morgan cutout when she suddenly jerks backwards. "I—wha...?" she sputters, dumbfounded. Anna and Kristoff burst out laughing at the reaction, causing Elsa to cross her arms and blush brilliantly.

"I mean she might _sleep_ there, thinking it's her bed," Kristoff says, still chortling. "Jeez, get your mind out of the gutter."

"Yeah," Anna pipes up, wanting to get one last tease in, "Kristoff said I'm a _cheap_ date, not an easy one."

Elsa buries her head in her hands but Anna can still see her heated ears. "Oh it's okay," Anna says, giving her a good pat on the shoulder, "It's a common mistake to make."

Elsa's words are muffled but Anna hears her say, "I would never think you were an easy date." She sounds almost _offended_ that Anna would say such a thing.

Anna wonders how she can be so nice even as she's being teased mercilessly. She gently takes one of Elsa's hands away from her face, smiling when she sees blue eyes peering back at her.

She steers the conversation into less awkward territory as the three head to the cashier. "How are you with scary movies? I have a few ideas in mind."

Elsa shrugs, embarrassment beginning to fade. "I don't really watch them, but I doubt I'll get scared easily."

Anna narrows her eyes. Is that a challenge? "We'll see about that."

* * *

"Elsa…I can't…feel my arm," Anna whispers shortly after a facehugger skitters across the screen.

The living room is completely dark except for the glow emanating from the tv. Hiccup and Merida are laying on their stomachs in front of the tv, legs kicked up behind them. The couch holds Elsa and Kristoff, with Anna sandwiched between them. Rapunzel and her boyfriend Flynn hover near the kitchen. Rapunzel is protectively enveloped in Flynn's arms, taking small peeks of the movie while he looks on, amused.

"I'm not sorry," Elsa hisses back vehemently. Her grip on Anna's forearm loosens slightly but she doesn't let go. "I didn't want to watch this movie in the first place because it looked really—" She flinches at the tv screen when the facehugger manages to wrap its tail around Ripley's throat.

Rapunzel gasps at the same time and buries herself into Flynn. Apparently the blondes are genetically predisposed to being terrified of _Aliens_.

Kristoff points excitedly at the screen. "Newt almost got killed! Take a drink!" he orders the others. He tips his own beer back, finishing the last of it in one swig. Sighing in satisfaction, he moves his legs until one is flush against Anna's, causing her to scoot closer to Elsa so he can have some space.

She nurses her own drink (sprite mixed with some seriously delicious mango rum) and side-eyes Elsa. While the rest of the group is comfortably buzzed, she's taking sips of water out of her favorite mug. It's a shame she doesn't seem to like the warm, relaxing sensation of alcohol humming through her veins, Anna thinks. Because it feels _awesome_.

The rest of the movie goes along in much the same manner; all the hunters cheer whenever an alien gets fried and talk about how they would finish them off. The others either chime in (Flynn) or are too busy averting their eyes when a scary scene comes on (Elsa and Rapunzel).

During the climax, everyone who has seen the movie raises their drinks and choruses, " _Get away from her, you bitch!_ " alongside Ripley. The line signifies chugging the rest of their preferred poison, and Anna starts to feel incredibly lightheaded and not the least bit sober.

Once the credits roll, Hiccup demands they play Super Smash Bros., confident he can wallop the rest of them into the ground. The mechanical engineering major lives on the opposite side of town as Kristoff and Anna, and as such they rarely see each other. However, every Level Two hunter in the area has heard the story of how he lost his foot fighting a [pakhangba](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakhangba). Despite the horrendous experience, he's still an incredibly chipper guy.

Elsa, who has been hanging back most of the night, volunteers herself for the first round of Smash, a look of intense focus suddenly coming over her. Rapunzel and Flynn join in and the four go at it to the cheers of the others. The first match is over shockingly fast—Elsa comes out the victor, her Zelda absolutely destroying the competition. There are cries for a rematch, but the results are the same—Elsa wins rounds two, three and four as well.

Hiccup's mouth drops open and he turns to gape at her. "The hell?" he says, tone vaguely accusing. "I've been the reigning champion since the beginning of time!"

Anna, oddly smug over Elsa's victory, wraps an arm around the woman's neck. "There's a new champion in town and she is my amazing, cool, super awesome roommate!" If her words slur a little, no one points it out.

Elsa feels warm under her touch, but then again, _everything_ feels warm at the moment. She should definitely stay away from the mango rum at the next party. Releasing Elsa from her hold, she swipes Hiccup's controller and announces, "I'm next! I'll beat everyone in the world!"

Hiccup sighs and fiddles with the Gamecube for a second before standing up, the tip of his prosthesis poking through a hole in his sock. "Fine, fine. Let's see how you do."

The game is on, all competitors launching into action. Anna can barely follow the movements on the screen and contents herself with mashing buttons at random. When the end of the match is over, Anna fist pumps in victory. "Don't feel too bad," she tells the others, who are looking at her in bewilderment. "I used to play a lot when I was younger."

"Umm…Anna?" Elsa says haltingly. Her shoulders begin to shake and she breaks out into a full blown grin. "Hiccup unplugged your controller before you even started playing."

Anna stares down at her controller in confusion, pulling on its cord until the end is firmly in her hand. Everyone starts laughing as she turns red. "I hate you all!" she yells over their amusement. "You're all terrible people!"

She stands up and swipes a Strongbow Merida brought (because _of course_ she'd buy anything with an archer on it) and stomps towards the entryway. The protests of her friends fade as she puts on her jacket and heads outside.

She's not angry at them, not really. Even her alcohol-soaked brain realizes they were just having fun. But drinking can make her uncomfortably hot, and so she plops down in the snow under her apartment, not really caring that it will make her clothes wet.

The sky is bereft of clouds tonight, allowing the universe to showcase its best and brightest stars with no distractions.

She takes a sip of cider and smiles at the warmth pooling in her stomach. It's not long before she hears someone coming to join her.

"You okay out here?" Kristoff asks as he sits down next to her. For once, he's missing his beanie. Small flakes of snow make contact with his hair and melt.

"'course I am," Anna answers immediately. Her eyes go back to the stars and she smiles. "Today's been a good day, hasn't it?"

Kristoff chuckles. "Yeah, it really has been. I'm glad Elsa's been able to join us."

Anna nods enthusiastically. "She's really fun to hang out with. At first she was a total ice queen, like not talking or being standoff-ish when she did. I didn't think we would be friends. But now…now she's really nice and funnier than I thought she would be. And a bit on the awkward side, too. I kind of like embarrassing her." The alcohol has loosened her tongue, letting her speak her mind a bit more freely than she normally would.

"She really is something," Kristoff says warmly. He pauses, about to add something more, before shaking his head.

They lapse into silence, just taking in their surroundings. After a few minutes, a question bubbles up inside Anna. "Kristoff, where are your parents right now?" She doesn't quite remember if she's asked recently, even though it's something she tries to keep up with.

Kristoff takes a moment to think about it. "Bolivia," he eventually says, though he sounds unsure. "Or Paraguay. Yeah, I think the last package was from Paraguay."

Anna nods. His parents always tried to keep up with their son, even when they were busy hunting creatures halfway around the world. Kristoff's packages were usually modest; including a few pictures, a letter, maybe a souvenir or two. They even bought things for Anna sometimes.

"You're really lucky, you know," Anna says thoughtfully. She takes another swallow of cider when she feels her eyes starting to burn.

It becomes silent again—both of them know she's not talking about the packages.

"Since when did you become a sad drunk?" Kristoff asks eventually, trying to lighten the mood.

Anna shrugs. "Snow makes me sad sometimes. It's all cold and floaty. Reminds me of things."

Kristoff comes a bit closer, placing a gloved hand on her arm. "Do you want to head back inside?"

"In a bit. I want to be a sad drunk for a while longer."

He nods and plunks down next to her.

They lay like that for what feels like hours, watching their breath dissipate in front of their eyes. When Anna finally feels the snow seeping into her underwear, she sits up. The hair on the back of her head has giant snow clumps in it.

Kristoff appears to be snoozing but when she calls his name, his eyes snap open right away. "Ready?" he asks.

She nods and they head up the stairs, Anna having to lean heavily against him since her balance is shot.

When she opens the door, the only sounds Anna can hear are coming from the television. She peeks into the living room and sees Hiccup and Merida spread out on the floor, asleep. Rapunzel and Flynn are murmuring quietly to one another on the couch. The television is playing one of the original _Twilight Zone_ episodes, the volume low.

When he sees them, Flynn stands up with a smile. "We're going to head out. It was nice meeting you both."

Rapunzel yawns and nods. "Elsa said to tell you she went to sleep," she says to Anna. "And that she was really disappointed you missed 'Never Have I Ever'."

Anna snorts quietly. "I doubt she even played."

Rapunzel bows her head in acknowledgement. "I'll see around, okay?"

The four of them say their goodbyes and the couple head out into the night.

"I'll take care of the others," Kristoff says in a low voice. "You just get some sleep; you look like you're about to gather the empty bottles and use them as pillows."

Anna nods easily—she's dead tired, both her stomach and head heavy with alcohol. "Have a good weekend," she says before shutting herself in her room.

Not bothering to even take off her shoes or jacket, she falls straight onto her bed, curls up, and goes to sleep.

* * *

She wakes up to the sound of her pager going haywire. She groans and reaches out to grasp it, only succeeding in pushing it off her nightstand and onto the floor.

By the time she manages to sit upright and swing her legs over her bed, she realizes she's made the ultimate rookie mistake when it comes alcohol—she forgot to rehydrate last night. And now her head is aching, her mouth is dry, and her stomach is crying out for food.

"Stupid goddamn rum," she mutters. Snatching the pager off the floor, she squints at it.

__[akaname](http://yokai.com/akaname/) _ , 5ft, 30.07°, 82.61°, in bldg_

She frowns. "What the hell…" a huge yawn bisects her grumbling, "is an akaname?" Today is _not_ the day to take on a completely unfamiliar creature, especially considering it's in one of the new areas.

Nonetheless, she hauls herself out of bed and heads to the bathroom to get ready. Her lips curl at her reflection; the skin under her eyes is dark and puffy while the rest of her face is paler than usual, making her freckles stand out sharply. Her hair is, as usual, a total bird's nest.

But despite her physical aches and appearance, she doesn't feel nauseous at all. She would hate to go on a monster hunt _completely_ hungover. Being partially hungover will be hard enough.

After exiting the bathroom, she realizes that the living room is surprisingly bereft of both people and alcohol. Actually, it looks like a party never even took place last night. She'll have to remember to buy Kristoff lunch sometime this week.

Though speaking of lunch…she takes a look at the kitchen clock and curses at the time. It's actually a little after one in the afternoon. A horrible thought runs through her mind—just how long was her pager going off before it woke her up? Even if it only started beeping an hour ago, that's an hour lost in hunting, an hour for the creature to move in any direction.

Her routine quickens after that, and soon she's in her hunting clothes with a piece of toast sticking out her mouth. Her finger flip quickly through one of her many bestiaries until she lands on the entry for the akaname. She can't waste too much time with research, but she needs to at least look the creature up.

"Long tongue…filth-eater…territorial…blah blah blah…" she mutters, eyes running across the pages. Overall, the creature doesn't seem like he'll be much of a challenge, even in her less-than-perfect state. She's dealt with far worse things than this and has always come out alive, though maybe a bit worse for wear.

Her nose wrinkles when she reads where they like to reside. "God, this is going to be disgusting."

* * *

The fresh powder crunches beneath her feet, the only sound in the otherwise quiet forest. The reflection of the sun on top of the snow feels like it's stabbing into her eyes, making the short hike much more unbearable than usual. She's almost relieved to find the building that matches her assignment's coordinates.

_Almost_ , because the place is an abandoned sauna-slash-bathroom. The wood making up the exterior is musty and the weight of snow on the roof makes it dip slightly. All of the windows are blown out, having not been able to withstand the harsh winter winds. Above the entrance in red, chipped paint is a sign reading _Oaken's_.

Anna glowers at the name. Whoever the hell this Oaken character is, she hopes he's learned his lesson of creating a business in the middle of nowhere.

She repositions the net gun in her hand and makes sure her knives are all accounted for. As much as she would like to use her bow, the quarters are too close to shoot it accurately. Weapons in hand, she pushes through the door and heads inside.

Despite the windows, it's almost pitch black inside. She leaves the door open behind her, hoping to illuminate the place a bit better. It only helps a little—she can tell she's in the lobby area, though everything that might have made _Oaken's_ personable once is gone. She can see squares on the walls that are a lighter shade than others; evidence that pictures once hung there.

There are only two doors past the lobby: one leading to the sauna and the other to the bathroom. Unfortunately, she's not going in the direction of a relaxing steam bath. Before opening the door to the bathroom, she wraps her scarf tightly around the lower-half of her face, hoping it will protect her from some of the odor she's about to endure.

It doesn't help. Not at all.

The stench of human and animal excrement is enough to make her stomach roll violently even before she takes her first full step into the room. The bathroom has four toilets, each within their own private stalls. At some point all of their pipes had burst, spilling now-frozen sewage across the floor. The porcelain sinks are gaping and cracked, and there's more mirror on the floor than the wall.

_This really is the worst post-hangover assignment I could have gotten._

Anna unsheathes one of her knives and makes her way to the stall closest to her, careful not to slip on the muck underneath her. She swings the stall door open but it's clear except for a brown-stained toilet.

Okay, fine. She repeats the procedure to the next toilet. Then the next. And then the last.

"What's going on?" she mutters, confused. The coordinates were _right,_ dammit. This is the only building for miles around and the creature should be here. Is he hiding somewhere in the sauna? It wouldn't make sense to do so unless there's also an abundance of excrement there as well, but it's worth checking out.

Rubbing at her runny nose through her scarf, she turns to leave—and freezes.

On the wall above the door, the akaname cocks his head at her. He makes a strange clicking sound, then another, before he springs off the wall and collides with her.

Anna's feet slip out immediately when his weight hits her, elbows and head hitting the ground before anything else. A gasp of pain forces its way inside her lungs, causing her to inhale the creature's putrid odor.

An uncontrollable urge to vomit overtakes her, and she frantically kicks him off and unravels her scarf just in time for her stomach to empty itself. She pushes away from the mess, hitting the wall behind her hard enough to bruise her shoulders.

Through watering eyes, she sees the creature crawling towards her on all fours. His skin is a dark, rusted color and the his tongue drags along the floor, leaving a slimy trail in its wake. He pauses when he gets close to her vomit, giving it a considering look before taking a swipe at it with his tongue.

Anna's still trying to catch her breath, hands clenched against the urge to get sick again. Her head is pounding and it takes her a moment to realize she dropped her weapons in her struggle to get away from him.

Thankfully, the knife she always sticks in her boot is still there. But before she can even reach for it, the akaname's pale tongue lashes out and wraps around her ankle. A hard yank forces her away from the wall, her head once again making contact with the hard floor. His tongue twitches and she begins to helplessly skid through filth and waste, heading straight towards his mouth. There's nothing to hold onto, nothing that can stop her from reaching him.

But an object on the ground slashes open her palm as she passes it, and she grasps it tightly instead of flinching away from it. When her foot comes dangerously close to the akaname's teeth, she uses her forward momentum to sit up and swipe towards his face.

The mirror shard slices him from cheek to cheek, causing him to howl in a tone that sends goosebumps across Anna's skin. She had hoped the pain would be enough for him to let her go, but if anything his tongue tightens further around her ankle. Holding her leg in place with one clawed hand, he bites down, canines effortlessly puncturing through her jeans before breaking the skin.

Anna cries out in pain, her grip on the glass tightening until she can feel blood dripping past her fingers. This time she uses a downward stabbing motion with the shard, aiming for her favorite target—one of his eyes. She yanks the shard back out, grinning savagely when she sees that his entire eyeball came out with it.

The attack has the desired effect this time; the akaname finally lets go of her, clutching at his ruined face. Anna feels a jolt go through his bite mark, followed by a sudden wave of heat. She shakes the feeling off as best she can—there's not time to check the severity of her injury.

She stands up shakily, using one of the sinks to lean against. Her head swims with the motion, vision going dark for a moment. She adds 'possible concussion' to her list of injuries and focuses instead on her leg. It seems like it can bear weight and so she reaches past the bite to grab her knife. The akaname is still on the other side of the bathroom, assessing his own wounds. Using her free hand, she throws the knife, hoping to hit one of the bulging arteries in his neck.

Without even looking in her direction, his arm comes up inhumanly fast and slaps the weapon away. Snarling, he violently whips his head so he's facing her, the motion causing gore to fly from his wounds. Pushing off the far wall, he charges towards her.

For a moment, Anna can see her own death. The akaname would be on her in a heartbeat, claws slipping in between her ribs and puncturing her lungs. As she struggled to breathe, he would open up her torso to feast on whatever her could find in her stomach and intestines. Kristoff wouldn't know she was dead, not until the Guild gave an official notice long after the fact. And Elsa…her roommate would just think she disappeared, never to be seen again.

But the moment is quickly dashed—the akaname's limbs begin to slide wildly below his body, unable to find purchase on the ice. His side slams into her, sending them both crashing against the wall. The damp and rotting wood splinters under their combined weight and they go straight through the building.

In the space of a breath, everything is weightless. Then she slams against the ground, the creature on top of her.

* * *

When she wakes up, the sun is setting and she's close to freezing. The akaname is a solid weight on top of her, making it almost impossible to breathe (not that she really wants to breathe in the fumes rolling off his skin).

"Move," she says softly, the tone almost pleading. "Get off."

He doesn't comply, and the stiffness of his body can only mean that he's dead. She twists and squirms, slowly able to push out from under him. When she's finally free, she's too weak to stand. The best she can do is crawl a few feet away from him and take in the first excrement-free inhales since entering the building.

Glancing at the akaname, Anna wonders how he managed to injure himself so severely when she notices a glimmer atop his ribcage. It's a piece of glass, the same one she had used on his eye. When he ran at her, she must have been holding it in her hand and had somehow managed to stab him with it. The move wasn't intentional but she'll take what she can get.

Despite the threat being taken care of, Anna can't summon even an ounce of relief. Her brain feels swollen inside her skull and her leg is starting to heat up again. The hand that held the mirror is a bloody mess—the palm is completely sliced open, as is the skin covering the joints of her fingers.

Her vision is starting to feel murky, making everything around her seem like it's underwater. Once she wraps her scarf around her hand, she attempts to stand up again. This time she makes it a few feet in the general direction of her car before falling over.

Step, step, fall.

Step, step, fall.

The process repeats itself over and over. By the time Anna sees her vehicle, the sky is dark and tears of exhaustion are welling in her eyes. The heat from her bite has steadily been crawling upwards, reaching the middle of her thigh by the time she struggles with the door handle.

She manages a weak smile towards the object in the passenger seat—by sheer chance, she had brought the bestiary with her. Fingers shaking with cold, she reaches for her akaname bookmark and reads what she had neglected to earlier:

' _The akaname's sticky tongue is used to ingest grease, excrement, hair, and whatever else he can find in his home. His main method of self-defense comes from injecting his victim with venom from his fangs. The venom is fast acting, leading to fever, nausea, elevated heart rate, and vision problems. If not treated quickly, the venom will cause paralysis and possibly death.'_

Anna covers her mouth with a shaky hand. "I'm so stupid," she whispers. Swinging her leg onto the passenger seat, she rolls up her jeans to see the damage.

The bite has imprinted most of the akaname's teeth into her skin, the pattern wrapping nearly all the way around her calf. The wound is oozing blood and pus, and streaky red lines are making their way towards her heart.

"Oh god," she says, panicked. She nearly rips open her glove box, digging through the many first aid supplies crammed into the space.

Her hand lands on a tiny bottle, one that had cost her nearly a month's rent. _"It's not a cure all, but it's close,"_ she remembers her supplier saying, his pale blue eyes looking seriously into her own, _"If you get bitten, stung by something, this can help your body fight off the toxins. The pain from this will be just as bad as the venom, the only difference being that it won't kill you."_

"Very comforting, Jack," she mutters, hand reaching back into the glove box. She comes out with a syringe and quickly fills it with the bottle's thick liquid. She takes a steadying breath, trying to get her heart rate under control.

The needle hovers at her inner elbow, ready to be inserted. This isn't the first time she's had to use an intravenous route for medicine, but the previous times hadn't involved vision distortion or extremely shaky hands.

"Now or never," she says, nodding comfortingly to herself. The needle breaks the skin and slips into a vein. Once the syringe is emptied, she recaps the needle and is about to wrap it up when she blacks out.

* * *

"…nna. Anna!" She's propped up against something solid, though her head is lolling down towards her chest. Her eyelids feel impossibly heavy.

"Anna, wake up!"

She groans when she feels fingers grasp her chin and tilt it upwards. She forces her eyes open, squinting against the light of a familiar room and a familiar face.

"Els…" Anna tries to say, and the face becomes clearer. Elsa's kneeling down in front of her, a look of concentrated worry on her face. They're in the front hall of their apartment, right up against the door. "I…" Anna swallows, "I hope I didn't hit anyone." She didn't mean to say that out loud, but her mind is starting to go hazy from the venom, the medicine, and a likely concussion.

Despite her obvious concern, Elsa's eyebrows draw together. "What," she asks carefully, "do you mean?"

_I don't know how I got here._

She can't tell Elsa that. It would lead to questions, and she just might answer them truthfully. So she stays silent, wanting Elsa to leave her alone.

But of course she doesn't. She picks up Anna from under her armpits, slinging one of Anna's arms around her shoulders. Anna appreciates the fact that she doesn't instantly recoil due to her odor. "We need to get you to a hospital," Elsa decides. Once she's fully supporting Anna, she begins to open the door.

"No," Anna says against a wave of vertigo. "I'm not going." She already took the antivenom and there's too much risk in going there without being able to warn any Guild doctors ahead of time. Even her head injury can be healed once she's able to move on her own. All she has to do is wait out the side effects.

The exasperation on Elsa's face is almost enough to make her smile. "You're covered in who-knows-what, you have a fever, and you can't even stand on your own," Elsa lists off, ignoring Anna's feeble attempt to block the door with her good leg. "I am taking you whether you want to or not."

Anna squeezes her eyes shut and says very deliberately, "I will _not_ forgive you if you do this. Ever." She doesn't quite regret the words, since she knows they will stop Elsa, but they add a different, deeper kind of hurt to her.

Elsa's grip on her slackens and Anna nearly falls back to the floor. Her roommate quickly readjusts her hold to keep her upright. "Anna," Elsa's voice is shaking and so are her hands, "I'm just trying to help."

Anna sighs tiredly, leaning her head against Elsa's shoulder. "I know. But it has to be this way. Just please…let me stay here, just for the night."

"I don't like this at all," Elsa mumbles against her hair. In a louder voice she says, "Fine. But you should at least be in bed right now."

Anna shakes her head at that too. "The couch is fine." Like it usually is right before she goes on a hunt, her room is a mess of books and weapons.

She feels Elsa stiffen. "My bed, then." She starts off in the direction of her room without waiting for a reply. Anna tries to support herself as best she can, but Elsa ends up carrying her most of the way.

Elsa gently lowers her onto the bed, apparently not even caring that her bed sheets will likely be ruined from Anna's disgusting state. "I'm getting a wet washcloth for you," Elsa says after she's satisfied with Anna's positioning. "Try not to get any more injured while I'm gone."

"No promises," Anna says weakly, watching her leave. She really doesn't deserve such a good friend, especially one who's not in the loop. What the hell is she going to tell her when this is over?

A hot spasm suddenly shoots through Anna's core, signaling the fight between venom and antivenom inside her. She groans, eyes shutting against the sensation. The heat spreads like wildfire, going down to her legs, along her arms, up to her head.

She can't breathe; it's too hot. Her clothes are a constricting weight on her, trapping the warmth between them and her body. By the time Elsa comes back, Anna's out of her jacket and struggling with the collar of her shirt.

"I can't…" she gasps, "I can't take it." Elsa drops the towel to help guide Anna out of the shirt. The only thing underneath is a black bra, and even _she_ has enough sense to know it should probably stay on.

Above her, there's a sharp intake of breath. She feels the damp towel gliding across her ribs and along the sides of her stomach. "What are these from?" Elsa murmurs, mostly to herself. Anna can only imagine what she's looking at—scratches? Bruises? All of the above and more? Anna's just glad she hasn't been paying attention to her injured hand, which is between her and the wall.

"Forest," Anna forces out, wanting to put Elsa at ease as much as she could. "Animal." It's the most accurate thing she can say right now.

But Elsa is already shaking her head, a tight smile on her face. "You're such a bad liar," she says. Her voice cracks in the middle.

Anna huffs, because even if she is the worst liar in the world, she just gave Elsa the truth.

Another wave of heat wracks her body, and her back arches against it, muscles becoming as tight as bow strings. The fire doesn't go away this time but lingers, meanders through her without a care.

The towel is on her face now, but it's not helping. It doesn't even feel cold anymore. A spike of self-loathing goes through her. "My fault," she whispers, leaning her face away from Elsa's ministrations.

She looks up and sees Elsa gazing at her. Feels Elsa's hand close around one of her own. There's silent compassion in her, though Anna doesn't know what she's done to deserve such kindness. All she's done is drag Elsa into another one of her cases. Anger boils up again, spurred on by the fever.

"I-I didn't do my homework," Anna says softly, eyes burning. "All…all I did was skim. I'm so _stupid_."

Apparently the words are the last thing Elsa expects to hear. Her grip loosens around Anna's hand slightly and she tilts her head. "Homework? Anna, I think you're becoming delir—"

Anna vehemently shakes her head. "I overestimated…myself. I thought it would be easy, but…but I was fighting the hangover and…" she stops, shame marring her features. She's never so royally fucked up a case before. And all because she was too impatient to do the research.

A bolt of heat hits her injured hand, causing her to flinch. The pain is getting to be too much to bear. She can tell that she's sweat her way through Elsa's comforter and all the underlying sheets. Her hair is damp and she feels it sticking to the nape of her neck.

Her mouth works, struggling to form words. "You should…go," Anna says at last. "I'll be…better in the morning." Elsa should get some rest. Hell, she shouldn't even _want_ to be here, friend or not. Anna really wouldn't blame her if she wanted to leave. Her eyelids are getting heavy again—proof that even a raging fever isn't enough to keep her conscious in the light of her crappy day.

Elsa's voice breaks through her mental fog. "I'm not leaving," she says stubbornly. If anything, her grip on Anna's hand becomes even tighter.

Anna simply shakes her head again, too sleepy to protest vocally.

"Anna," Elsa says, voice sounding like it's right next to her, "I'm going to help you." There's a note of determination in the words, like they're a promise Elsa will do anything to fulfill.

Anna finally closes her eyes and she lets out a shaky exhale. The moment she does so, Elsa lets go of her. Elsa's hand ghosts over Anna's arm, her shoulder, across her collarbone, until its cradling the back of her neck. Her other hand sweeps aside her bangs and presses against her cheek, fingers burying themselves in her hair.

Cold.

For the first time since this afternoon, she feels _cold_.

Anna shifts slightly, though her eyes stay shut. The strange thing is that the sensation seems to be coming from Elsa's hands. The cold makes its way through the rest of her in slow, pulsating movements. The fever is still there, but it's diminished now, mere embers compared to the fire it once was.

 

Elsa's hands stay on her for an indeterminate amount of time, until the sheen of sweat on her body has dried, until goosebumps finally reappear across her skin. Elsa releases her when Anna shivers, and she pulls out a blanket to cover her half-naked form.

Anna drifts off in a deep, but slightly troubled, sleep.

* * *

The next time she opens her eyes, the light coming through the blinds is a dark blue, indicating a cloudy day ahead of her.

She's surprisingly refreshed, though her bad hand is throbbing beneath the scarf. Her head still feels a little stuffy, but it's nothing that can't be cleared up with some medicine. Rubbing her eyes, she sits up, the blanket on her slipping down slightly.

On the floor right next to the bed, Elsa is curled up in a loose ball. She looks exhausted, her features pale and drawn out. One of her hands is outstretched towards the bed, as if reaching for Anna.

Memories from last night surge back, and Anna's heart starts thudding inside her chest.

The cold. It had come from Elsa's hands. There's a possibility that she had been dreaming about Elsa helping her, but she doesn't think it's a very likely one. The memories are too vivid, too _real_ , which means…

Anna holds her head in her palms, trying to make a mental list.

First there was the snow coming out from beneath Elsa's door even though the window was shut.

There's the fact that the apartment's heater didn't start malfunctioning until Elsa moved in.

And then the freak gust of snow that managed to come through Weselton's lecture hall…

Anna carefully turns over to stare fully at the woman on the floor. The one who cared for her, worried over her…the one who may not be entirely human.

_Oh crap._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Artwork by __[kookoo-nut](http://kookoo-nut.tumblr.com/). Check out her other stuff!__


	6. Ain't Born Typical

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the overdue chapter, life has been hectic these past few months. In case anyone is interested, I recently created a tumblr account ([thewolfbrigade](http://thewolfbrigade.tumblr.com/)) so I can interact with you guys a bit more. Hope you enjoy!

The first thing Anna does upon getting out of bed is _not_ run out of the apartment screaming. Nor does she wake Elsa up and confront her about her decidedly inhuman healing hands. No, the first thing she does is put Elsa's soiled sheets in the washer.

Because she's still Elsa. Because this is far from the first time Anna has encountered someone not quite human. Because those sheets _really_ stink.

The second thing she does is take a long, hot shower. As she's waiting for the water to heat up, she stares at her reflection in the mirror, at what Elsa must have seen last night. Her torso is relatively clean compared to the rest of her, but that just means the dark bruises show up better against her light skin. There's plenty of accessory scrapes that look more painful than they actually are—a particularly ugly looking one stretches from her sternum to her side in one long, red line. When she peels the scarf around her hand, she finds a dried, crusty mess. But somehow the cuts don't seem as deep as they were last night.

The water is nearly scalding when she steps under the spray; all the better to burn last night off. She uses two entire bottles of bodywash, and only realizes after the fact that one of them didn't belong to her. She shampoos and scrubs and rinses until she's sure not a molecule of filth is left on her. The water circling down the drain slowly fades from black into a pale gray, until it finally becomes clear.

Anna soon has a coffee in her hand and is pacing around the living room, only a slight limp in her bad leg. Her body is humming with caffeine and the magic-infused ointments she put on, and she's finding it hard to stay still. Every few minutes she peeks into Elsa's room, finding her to still be asleep every time.

Honestly, this whole thing is kind of exciting. If Elsa is indeed nonhuman, Anna can tell her all about her job as a hunter—there wouldn't be a need for any more lies, a notion that has her grinning like an idiot. But still, she has to be _absolutely sure_ that Elsa isn't human before she can tell her anything. The consequences for revealing the supernatural world to humans are…not pleasant.

When the sheets are ready to be switched over, Anna desperately hopes they'll be okay to sleep on again. The last thing she wants is Elsa to be down a set of bedding (she had a harrowing night; her priorities are a bit skewed right now, okay?).

Since she has nowhere near the amount of patience right now to locate her cellphone, she opts to just drive to the place her usual supplier should be on a Sunday afternoon and hope he's there. His opinion, without a shred of doubt, is the only one she can trust on how to handle her Elsa situation.

The note she leaves Elsa before going out is short and to the point: ' _Hey, Elsa. I know last night was a bit weird, but I'm doing fine now. I have to run a few errands but I'll be back this afternoon. Also, your sheets are in the dryer.'_

As usual, it's flurrying when she steps outside. A small gust of wind forces the top of a snowdrift to break off and hit her square in the face. Anna sometimes has to wonder if she's living inside a snow globe.

"Damn," she grumbles when she gets into her still-smelly car. "I'll have a fun time washing this out." The seats and floor have questionable stains on them and her supplies will have to be carefully put back into the glove box in order for it to close properly.

While she waits impatiently for her heater to work like it's supposed to, she drives by Olaf, who still looks as fresh as the day she and Elsa made him. Anna's mouth purses in thought. How much of an idiot has she been to not realize what Elsa really is?

* * *

The bar she usually meets Jack at is like every seedy bar in the movies—unfriendly patrons growl as she walks past them, awful music ekes out of a jukebox in the corner, and the bartender gives her a wary nod. All in all, it's a very typical welcome for a human entering one of the only supernatural places in town.

Jack's sitting at a corner table, sipping from a mug full of steaming purple liquid and looking over a pile of papers. Whenever Anna sees him, she can't help but think he's playing dress up; the costume being 'perennial college student'. Silver-white hair is made to look artfully messy, with wisps carefully gelled upwards until they nearly create a fauxhawk. His usual blue hoodie is so faded it's starting to look gray around the shoulders and his light corduroy pants have tears near the hems. At least she was finally able to convince him that _no,_ flip-flops shouldn't be worn when there's snow outside.

"Seriously?" she says accusingly as she takes the seat across from him, "You brought homework to a bar?" It's a common conversation starter for them—because really, that's a weird thing to do.

He shrugs without looking up at her, as if he knew she would be coming here. "Two birds, one stone, Theron," he replies easily. "I get to have a delicious drink while grading these incredibly boring papers." He shoves his students' work aside and locks his pale eyes onto her own with a familiar, infuriating grin.

"And I thought TAs were supposed to be nice to us undergrads," she grumbles. Catching a waiter's eye, she points to Jack's drink and then herself.

"We _tolerate_ you, that's all," he corrects her. Looking impossibly smug, he adds, "Besides, my students think I'm awesome."

"I didn't know the opinions of children mattered so much to you," Anna teases him. The waiter comes back with her drink and she takes a sip. It's warm, bursting with the taste of sweet berries and mint.

Jack stares at her for a moment, lips curling in amusement. "You're all children to me," he says plainly.

Anna sticks her tongue out at him. When he's like this, sitting across from her at a bar and talking about school, it's hard to remember how old he really is. Many local legends surrounded a silver haired boy who caused mischief and created snow storms, who played with children and never got old. Every generation since the late 1700s grew up with a Jack Frost of their own, one they told new stories about to their children and grandchildren. This went on until the 1980s, when suddenly there were no new tales about him. Jack Frost had just…vanished.

The person in front of her isn't officially Jack Frost since no one in Arendelle would take him seriously with that name. He's Jack Alkaev, a biochemistry grad student. On the side, he sells supernatural healing supplies to hunters and other Guild members.

Anna clears her throat once she realizes they're still staring at each other. "There were some things I wanted to discuss with you," she starts, breaking the silence, "and you're the only one who can help me figure out what to do."

Jack straightens up at that, raising an eyebrow. "By all means, please continue."

"I got bitten by an akaname last night and I think my friend is an ice fae," she says as offhandedly as possible, just to see if she can surprise him.

He doesn't react at all other than giving her a thoughtful stare. Apparently it's hard to knock a centuries old being off balance. "What do you want to talk about first?" he asks without missing a beat.

"Well…" Anna says, hands knotting together on top of the table, "I know my friend should take precedence, but I need to make sure I'm not going to die anytime soon because of the akaname. I took your antivenom—which seriously, thanks for creating that—and I feel pretty good right now. But still…"

"You're right to be concerned," Jack nods, "the antivenom isn't perfect yet. And it's important to keep in mind that it's not a cure, but a _treatment_. It treats the symptoms but the venom is still inside you."

Anna deflates slightly at that. "And how long will it be there for?" The idea of having some part of that creature floating around inside of her is not a pleasant one.

"It can take anywhere from six to eight weeks for your body to flush out the toxins. You might get residual hot flashes or pain from the wound but if there's anything beyond that, feel free to contact me."

"Six to eight weeks…" she echoes in dismay, "that kind of sucks." She takes another sip of her drink to cheer herself up.

"That's no time at all," Jack says flippantly. "It'll be out of your system before you know it. Now let's talk about your friend." If Anna's not mistaken, he actually seems _interested_. Though of course he would be—he's the only ice fae in Arendelle that she knows of. It'd probably be comforting to have someone of the same species around.

And so Anna gives him a rundown of her proof of Elsa being a fae, everything she can recall up to last night. By the end, Jack is slouching back in his seat, a light frown on his face.

"That's it?" he asks when she finishes talking. "That's all you have?"

Anna furrows her eyebrows, confused. **"** That's more than enough, isn't it?"

Jack shakes his head. "The best piece of evidence you have occurred when you were most likely delirious. Everything else can be boiled down to coincidence."

"But—" Anna begins to protest. This isn't how she thought he'd handle the information at all.

"No 'buts'," he interjects. "This is a big deal. If it turns out your friend isn't fae and you start talking to her like she _is_ …you've just introduced a human to our world. The punishment for that would mean your friend gets memory wiped and you lose your position in the Guild. Among other things."

"I shouldn't feel this good after what happened to me yesterday," Anna says stubbornly. "My fever went away about four hours ago. Does your antivenom really work that fast?"

"No," Jack admits. Though just as stubbornly he goes on, "But your friend would need to have a huge amount of self-control to be able to heal you like that. And from the other things you've said about her, it doesn't seem likely that she has a good grip on her powers. It's all very inconsistent."

"I know how it sounds, but she _has_ to be fae." Anna says, starting to get frustrated. She didn't think it would be so hard to convince him of this.

They stare at each other for a long moment. Jack sighs and lowers his gaze to his now empty mug. When he looks back to her, there's an idea glinting bright in his eyes. "I need to meet her. I need to see for myself what she's like."

"I…what, really?" She feels dumb for not thinking about the possibility. Jack would be able to assess Elsa for himself, since he's obviously more aware of ice fae characteristics than she is.

Jack nods, starting to become enthusiastic again. "Just tell her it's a blind date or something. After all, girls find me irresistible." He gives her a charming smile as if it reaffirms his words.

Anna doesn't think she's ever rolled her eyes so hard. "More like insufferable," she mutters. Not that she's ever seen him with a girl romantically. Even with the rumors flying around campus about 'that cute biochem TA', he's never once been called anything less than professional in how he interacts with his students. "I'll see if she can meet you," Anna agrees. "But I don't think she'd be interested in a date with you." The idea rubs her the wrong way for some reason.

Jack shrugs, unoffended. "Tell her whatever will get her to meet me. Whether it's as a potential date or a grad student who could help with her classes, it doesn't matter. What's her last name?" he asks after a moment.

"Norling," Anna replies, "is that familiar to you?"

Jack shakes his head, a contemplative frown on his face. "I've never heard of any Norlings in the area, but I'll check with some people. See if you can get some information about her parents while I'm doing that."

"So that's it, then?" Anna asks, a little disappointed. She had the idea in her head that Jack would confirm her suspicions within minutes of her talking to him—this 'meet and greet' thing wasn't a part of her plan.

"That's all I can do right now without crossing any lines," he says, moving his pile of papers so they're back in front of him. "Call me when she agrees and we'll set up a meeting." With that, his attention turns to the homework, silently dismissing Anna.

"Goodbye to you too, Grandpa," Anna mutters as she gets up. She feels a light stinging sensation coming from her bite wound with the movement, but it doesn't impede her ability to walk.

After paying for her drink, she heads out towards the parking lot. Before she goes back home to Elsa, she wants to comb over her car to see if her phone's there. Her memory of last night is more than a bit jumbled but she's sure it was with her when she injected herself with Jack's antivenom.

Ten minutes of digging underneath her seats and through the rest of the car results in her victoriously clutching her phone—it had somehow migrated to the back of her car, hiding under her sleeping bag.

But her moment of triumph quickly turns to dread when she sees that multiple Guild numbers have called her in the last few hours.

"Shit," Anna says, head thumping against her seatback. She thinks she knows exactly what this is about, and it spells 'trouble' for her. "This is going to suck."

* * *

Three weeks.

She's been suspended for three goddamn weeks _without pay_ for negligence. The hunting supervisor she spoke to on the phone was less than pleased about her not calling Cleanup after her case, and then he was furious that she left weapons at the scene. She would be due to give a report to him on her failings as well as what she would do to avoid repeating such mistakes on future outings.

She can't deny that she made mistakes, but she had hoped they would be lenient due to the fact that she was _poisoned_. Instead, this would go down as a mark on her otherwise good record. Well, lesson learned, no alcohol. Ever again.

The phone call has her so worked up that her trip to the store seems like a blur and she's home before she knows it. She pokes her head through the front door, wondering if Elsa is finally up. There's no sign of her in the hall and so Anna tiptoes into the living room, only to come face to face with her.

Anna suddenly wishes Elsa was asleep—she looks like she's worked herself into a righteous anger in Anna's absence. Despite her loose sleep pants and soft gray shirt, Elsa somehow seems more terrifying than most of the monsters Anna's hunted down; her cheekbones have angry red blotches on them and her sharp eyes are narrowed at Anna. Even her hair (which is normally somewhere between 'flawless' and 'perfect') is unruly, as if she's been raking her hands through it.

Before Anna can even open her mouth to greet her, Elsa rounds on her. "I got your note," she says, eyes going down to the crumpled paper in her palm. "After the state you were in last night, how could you think a _note_ would be a good idea?" She throws the paper in Anna's direction and it floats harmlessly to the floor between them. "You should have woken me up!" The rising volume of her voice makes Anna flinch. "How am I supposed to know you didn't just collapse somewhere?"

Anna stays silent, wondering how, after all that's happened, Elsa can still be so worried about her. If they switched places, Anna's pretty sure she would have moved out by now. She really doesn't deserve to have such a good friend.

But Elsa is still looking at her expectantly. "Well?" she finally prompts, folding her arms over her chest. "Are you going to say anything?"

"I umm…bought you chocolates?" Anna says meekly, holding up the grocery bag in her hand. "Oh, and some more soap. I kind of used all of yours this morning."

The air between them is tense and Elsa doesn't look any less angry. "Good," she says stiffly, "you really stunk."

Anna doesn't know why—perhaps it's because she's just had one of the most trying days in her life—but she bursts out laughing at Elsa's response. Her hand drops the bag to wrap around her stomach, and she continues to laugh despite the discomfort it causes.

Elsa's lips twitch but she tamps down any amusement she might feel at Anna's state. "You need to tell me what's going on," she says in a voice so quiet Anna almost doesn't hear it.

That sobers Anna up and she catches her breath, wiping a tear away from the corner of her eye. "I told you last night—I was in the forest." Crap, things would be so much easier if she could just give her the whole truth.

Elsa's shaking her head, pink lips turning downwards. "And what kind of animal did that to you?" she asks, pointing at the entirety of Anna's body. "The high fever you had, the cuts and bruises all over your body…what was responsible for that?"

"I…" Anna shakes her head, wondering what she can possibly say.

"You know what," Elsa cuts her off, sitting down on the couch like her legs have given out. She stares hard at the note on the ground before looking back to Anna. Her eyes are still bright with anger, but there's weariness in them too, weariness in having the same lies told to her again and again. "I'm letting this go for now."

The declaration is so unexpected that Anna's mouth nearly drops open. Elsa continues, unhappiness seeping into her words. "I'm tired of worrying about you, but you keep coming home bloody or…or passed out on the floor." Steel glints in her eyes and she makes sure she has Anna's full attention. "The next time I see you like that, I'm dragging you to the hospital. I don't care how much you argue or fight against me. And after that…I'm done. I'll move out if I have to—if you don't tell me what you do when that pager of yours goes off."

 _She honestly has no idea_ , Anna realizes. No idea that she's a hunter or that her wounds have come from monsters. While it's true there are nonhumans who aren't part of the Guild, they all know about it and the various services it provides, and they should be familiar with most of the monsters that live near them. If Elsa is truly clueless about all of this, maybe she isn't fae after all, maybe Anna really _was_ delirious and this has all been wishful thinking on her part…

She swallows hard and sits next to her roommate, the cushion sinking in and making them bump shoulders. "I understand," she replies somberly. She wants to add that there's a chance she can tell Elsa everything soon, but that seems unlikely after all.

They stay sitting like that until Anna finally sighs and snatches the grocery bag off the floor. She turns to look at Elsa, scrunching her face in thought. "Is Lindt alright with you? I also got Godiva since I didn't know what you liked. You seem like someone who would enjoy the higher quality stuff."

A slow, reluctant smile finally comes across Elsa's face. "It's so hard to stay mad at you when you're like this," she says softly. When her eyes meet Anna's, there's a fondness in them that has Anna suddenly feeling vulnerable.

Anna looks away, heat flooding her cheeks. "Like what?" she questions, going through the bag and trying not to steal glances at Elsa.

A light huff is Elsa's only answer. She takes the bag from Anna's hands and looks into it, eyebrows rising in surprise. "You'll definitely have to help me eat all of this. What did you do, wipe out the entire candy aisle?"

Anna laughs easily, glad Elsa has given her a (frankly undeserved) pass for last night. As the two of them start peeling wrappers off the sweets, Anna can't help but feel a strange sensation in her stomach that has nothing to do with the chocolate.

* * *

But over the next few days, Anna learns that receiving Elsa's pass is not the same as earning her forgiveness. On the surface, Elsa seems the same—she's still sitting with her and Kristoff during Weselton's lectures, still making Anna dinner, still joking about her questionable taste in music ( _"I swear to god, if you call Taylor Swift 'the voice of our generation' one more time…")_. But it's not the same. Elsa's continued suspicion manifests itself on two distinct occasions.

The first happens on Monday morning. Kristoff nearly comes late to class, having to squeeze through the doors as Weselton is shutting them. His slight limp and cut cheek alert Anna that he must have had a rough hunt last night, and this is one of the rare times she's seen him without his beanie on. Next to her, Elsa goes rigid in her seat when she sees him.

Anna shifts towards him, concern etched into her features. Before she can even ask, Kristoff shakes his head. "I'll tell you later," he promises under his breath. He doesn't seem to be in the mood for small talk, judging by the lack of any follow up conversation. She still hasn't told him about her own eventful weekend, and so she only nods before turning back to her normal seating position.

Elsa is still staring at them both, silent frustration making itself known in the clenching of her jaw, the iron grip on her pen, and the tense set of her shoulders. She stays in relatively the same position for most of the class, making Anna feel sore just from looking at her. Even Weselton's venomous glares aren't as amusing as they usually are under the weight of Elsa's displeasure with both her and Kristoff. Once class is over, Elsa gets up and leaves without so much as a backwards glance towards the two of them, feigning deafness when Anna calls after her.

The second incident happens sometime in between Thursday and Friday, before the sun has even thought about rising. Armed with a thermos of coffee and two energy drinks, Anna manages to successfully pull off an all-nighter in the living room for a class project—the only problem being that the caffeine makes her crash before she can even get to her bedroom.

This results in her sleeping on the floor with her back against the couch, head tilted onto the seat cushion at an extremely uncomfortable angle. A foot is propped up on the coffee table and a highlighter is still loosely grasped in one of her hands. A light blanket covers most of her body. When she wakes up, it's to her shoulder being urgently shaken.

"Don't you _dare_ be hurt again, Anna. I swear to god…" comes a voice sounding suspiciously like her roommate. The shaking resumes and the voice becomes louder. "Anna! Are you okay?"

"Hey…" Anna says blearily, eyes squinting open. She leans away from the hand in mild annoyance. "Stop that."

Elsa simply glowers at her, palm still warm against her shoulder. "I told you I'd take you to the hospital the next time you got hurt," she says accusingly. "Do you need help getting up?"

The juxtaposition between her tone and words makes Anna snort, but the face Elsa makes in response has her backpedalling immediately. "That won't be necessary, really." She has to bite her tongue to keep from adding a smart remark about Elsa's possible healing abilities—she is way too tired to safeguard her mouth properly.

But Elsa isn't buying it. "Where's the injury?" she demands, "Do you have a fever again?" Her hand moves towards Anna's forehead, not waiting for an answer. "Seriously, just _tell_ me what it is this time."

This is all becoming a bit too much. Anna sighs and reluctantly stands up. When her equilibrium is restored, she does a quick spin and shakes out her arms. "Do you want to hear what I was working on tonight?" she asks, gesturing towards her laptop. "It's a really fascinating project on silvicultural remediation of areas depleted by natural causes, specifically snow. Want me to go on about it?"

Elsa purses her lips and stands as well. She's wearing the clothes from this morning and fresh snow clings to her jacket. If she was home earlier, she would have seen Anna working, so logic dictates that this is the first time she's come back.

Though before she can remark that Elsa's also pulling late nights, she sees that Elsa is still staring at her, a faint brush of pink beginning to light up her face. Anna follows her gaze downwards to see what she's looking at. Anna's wearing dark sleep shorts that fall to the middle of her thighs and her black and white flannel is only buttoned up a little past her bellybutton, exposing part of her bra.

She quickly does up the rest of the buttons and crosses her arms over her chest. "It was warm tonight," she mutters sullenly. After all, it probably only felt warm because Elsa wasn't around to screw with the heater. And besides, Elsa's already seen her half-naked. What's the big deal?

Elsa is still staring blankly at her shirt, causing Anna to wave her hand in front of her roommate's face. "Hello, earth to Elsa."

Elsa blinks slowly and looks up at Anna's face. "What?" she asks, seemingly forgetting what they were talking about.

Anna blows an indignant puff of breath upwards, disturbing her bangs. "You were in the middle of berating me," Anna reminds her, "and I was defending myself with evidence of schoolwork."

"Of course," Elsa replies after clearing her throat. "In that case, I…apologize." She toes the ground awkwardly as though wondering whether she should leave or not.

"No need," Anna shrugs. Her lips quirk upwards and she adds, "I'm sure it's common for roommates to mistake all-nighters with needing to be rushed to the hospital." She hopes the words will bring out the Elsa she's grown accustomed to—the one who will snark right alongside her.

As expected, Elsa narrows her eyes and snipes back, "And I'm sure it's also common for roommates to come home dirty and severely injured. Silly of me not to realize that sooner."

Anna takes a step towards Elsa to clasp her shoulder. "Glad we got that straightened out! Now since I was so _rudely_ awakened from my super comfy position, I might as well move to my bed."

As Anna slides her books and laptop off the table and into her bag, she hears Elsa exhale tiredly. She straightens to find Elsa still in the same place, chewing on her lower lip in thought. "Hey," Anna says, done with joking. "You always ask if I'm alright, but I've never really asked you. If you need to talk about anything…just let me know, okay? I'm a good listener."

With her own busy schedule, it was sometimes hard to realize other people had their own problems. And Elsa…she's always been there for her. Anna would return that favor as many times as Elsa might need.

Elsa gives her a smile so faint it's barely there. "That has to go both ways. You won't talk to me about your personal life, will you?" She gives a slight shake of her head when Anna frowns in protest. "I want us to be on the same page. And I wish you felt that way, too." She turns and makes her way to her room, and this time Anna can't form words fast enough to make her stay.

"Shit," Anna mutters, feeling more upset than she would like to admit. She trudges off to her own bedroom, changing out her flannel in favor of a different baggy shirt (which coincidentally also belonged to Kristoff at one point).

She expects to drift off to sleep soon after her head touches her pillow, but she doesn't. Instead, she stares up at her ceiling, watching as the moon and clouds cast shadows across it. In the wake of her conversation with Elsa, she finds that she's no longer tired.

* * *

"No, no, no…" Anna says frantically as she attempts to hop into a pair of jeans the next morning. Her foot gets caught in the material and she stumbles against the wall before quickly righting herself and yanking her bedroom door open.

Even though it felt like she just closed her eyes for five minutes, she woke up to sunshine and the sound of silence—she had slept through her alarm and missed her first class completely. Anna almost wonders why Elsa didn't wake her up (they rode together on Fridays, after all), but then she checks her phone.

Elsa had left her five text messages in an apparent attempt to rouse her from sleep, including one that mentioned that yelling through the door had yielded no results. Anna grimaces at the fact Elsa had to take the bus to get to class. _Way to go, Anna. Like you aren't already a terrible friend._

She's taking an energy bar out of the pantry when a piece of paper catches in her periphery. When she comes closer, she sees that it's a note in front of her thermos. _This is for the chocolate. Don't worry about sleeping in, you probably deserved it. See you later. -Elsa_

Anna hesitantly grabs the thermos, hearing liquid slosh around inside. A snort of disbelief is expelled from her nose; instead of being annoyed by their conversation and her oversleeping, Elsa made her coffee. Seriously, she's kinda perfect.

After she finishes getting ready, she fires off a 'thank you' text to Elsa and sends Kristoff a message asking to meet for lunch. They haven't exchanged any meaningful words since the beginning of the week and she hasn't gotten the chance to tell him about her weekend adventures yet. For whatever reason, Kristoff's been closed off during class and hasn't been easy to reach outside of it.

He responds just as she finally finds a far-flung parking spot on the edge of campus, asking if they can meet at Tony's to talk over some food. Anna smiles as she texts him in the affirmative.

The smile on her face freezes when she suddenly remembers that even though she completed her silviculture project, she has no idea on how she's going to present it to her class. Perhaps she should be thankful for the long, cold walk ahead of her since it will give her plenty of time to strategize.

* * *

"You seriously thinks she's fae?" Kristoff asks her after swallowing a bite of pizza. Tony's Pizzeria is right across the main library, dimly lit and full of students huddled around its small tables.

Anna nods, still a little smug about how her presentation went. Since she had done most of the research last night, it was surprisingly easy to improvise what to say and she felt like her professor was satisfied with it. It's nice, catching a break every once in a while.

She reaches into her backpack for her still-full thermos, wanting to finally take a sip of Elsa's coffee. "Yeah…or at least I thought I did. Now I don't know what to think." The sooner she can arrange a meeting between Elsa and Jack, the better. The suspense is close to killing her.

Kristoff rubs thoughtfully at his chin. He looks better than he did on Monday, though the skin underneath his eyes is nearly gray and his beanie is still nowhere to be seen. "You're in the best position to see if she's fae or not, living with her and all. Too bad you can't just ask her straight up." He's taken this possible revelation in stride, though that's probably because he's part esper on his mother's side. It would be more than a little hypocritical of him to not accept Elsa if she had supernatural blood. He was actually more freaked out when she told him about the akaname incident (though that could be due to the fact that she came pretty close to death). 

Right when she's about to agree, he just has to add, "But I think I'm on Jack's side."

"That's horrible!" Anna says with a betrayed look on her face. She shudders, eyes close to watering.

"Whoa, hey now!" Kristoff says, raising his hands in the air. "I just think he might—"

"No," Anna cuts him off apologetically. "It's not you. My coffee just tastes...kinda bad." Even if Elsa meant the best, it's now clear she has no idea how to make Anna's favorite drink. It somehow tastes both weak and incredibly bitter. And knowing Anna likes to put cinnamon in her coffee, Elsa seems to have unloaded half a container of it into her thermos. The end result is honestly the worst thing she's ever drank.

Kristoff doesn't bother hiding a smirk. "In that case, I'm glad you agree with me and Jack."

Anna gives him a 'nice try' glare. "For the record," she corrects him, "I _don't_ agree with either of you. Why would you take his side over mine? You said it yourself; I'm in the best place to know what Elsa is."

"You are," he acknowledges. "But Jack is like a thousand years old. There's a chance he knows more about his own species than you do."

Does Kristoff want an argument? Because he's about to get one. Anna sits up straighter and folds her hands on the table. "First off, he's not even three hundred. He's practically a teenager. Secondly, age and wisdom don't necessarily correspond. I once saw him wearing crocs. _Crocs_ , Kristoff!" She had dragged Jack to the first private place she saw for a lecture on proper footwear, somehow managing to make a man incomprehensibly older than her look like a chastened child.

That seems to knock some wind out of Kristoff's sails. "Well that's…that's just unfortunate," he admits. "Though he's also pretty much a genius, even you can see that. He must have a good reason for doubting you."

Clearly, neither of them are going back down before they have to return to class. So Anna comes up with another idea. "Twenty bucks," she announces confidently. "Twenty bucks that Elsa is fae."

"Sure you want to make that bet?" he asks tauntingly. "You'd practically be giving your money away."

Anna sticks her hand out, coming dangerously close to spilling Kristoff's drink on him. "I'll take that chance."

He grasps it and gives her a firm shake. "Deal."

Comfortable silence settles between them as they finish their meals. Once there's sadly no more pizza crust on her plate, Anna asks what she's been thinking about most of the week. "What was up with you on Monday? You seemed a bit out of it." Even in Wednesday's class, he hadn't said more than a few cursory words to her, though now it seems like he's back to normal.

Kristoff's shoulders hunch up around his ears before he relaxes them with a sigh. "It was unexpectedly busy on Sunday night and my last case was a huge pain."

Anna nods, feeling guilty. With her absence for the next three weeks, the rest of the hunters in the area would have to pick up a few extra cases. "Want to talk about it?" she prompts him. It's unusual that he'd let a case get to him; normally he just keeps his eyes forward and focuses on whatever's next.

He looks down at the table and grabs one of the paper straw wrappers in front of him. "I was hunting a…[nguruvilu](http://warriorsofmyth.wikia.com/wiki/Nguruvilu)," he starts, stumbling a little over the name. At Anna's questioning look, he elaborates, "They look a bit like a fox but have really long, slinky bodies. They live in rivers and streams, and like to cause whirlpools when people cross them. I guess the Guild wanted me to preemptively take care of the little guy now instead of when the ice fully melts."

The straw wrapper is methodically being rolled into a ball between his fingertips as he continues. "I almost had him. Sven was supposed to cut him off and I would bag him from behind. But the snow was too deep for me to realize I was over a frozen stream. The bastard suddenly stopped and just… _stared_ at me. The next thing I knew, I was underwater."

Kristoff stops busying his hand and folds his arm across his chest, like he's remembering how cold the water was. "I couldn't get to the surface, even though it was _right there_. I would be reaching for it and just before my fingers could break the surface, I'd be swept away. Even as I was freaking the hell out and about to drown, I was able to tell Sven to ignore me and kill the nguruvilu. Once he got his jaws around the thing's neck, the water stilled and Sven was able to help me out. Though sadly my beanie is now lost forever," he finishes lightly.

He stays silent after that but Anna knows that's not the end of the story. Kristoff must have been close to hypothermic and who knows how far away he had parked. And even after he got to his car, he would have to drive himself home and properly warm up. It seemed like they were in similarly crappy situations this weekend.

Kristoff suddenly shifts in his seat, looking even more uncomfortable than before. "That's uhh…that's not the only reason I was in a bad mood earlier." He stares hard at the empty plates in front of them.

Anna raises a curious eyebrow. "What else is there?"

His mouth twists in thought and his next words are directed at the table. "My parents aren't coming back for Thanksgiving. Again. And Christmas looks questionable too."

"Oh, Kristoff—" Anna starts, unable to stop an unhappy frown from crossing her face. She knows Kristoff has been looking forward to seeing his parents this month, but professional hunters have hectic, unpredictable schedules. The last time he saw them…it must have been at least a year and a half ago.

"No, it's fine," he says, trying to wave away his previous words. "I shouldn't have said anything. Besides, I'm sure the trolls wouldn't mind a visit from their favorite human again. You can come too. It'll be fun."

Anna snorts. "No it won't." She doesn't mean for her words to sound so dismissive, but Kristoff picks up the meaning behind them. Anna _loves_ their old babysitters. What she hates is the holiday itself. For the past two years she's 'celebrated' it alone, preferring that to souring the day for other people. She isn't planning on this year being any different.

"Suit yourself," he shrugs casually—he knows better than to try to push her to do anything for Thanksgiving. "But I didn't hear you argue that I'm their favorite."

"That's because it's clearly a lie," Anna retorts. She gestures that they get up and they make their way towards the cashier. " _You're_ the one they're always calling a 'fixer upper'."

"They just want me to be the best man I can be!" he says defensively. The cashier gives him a weird look at the outburst and Anna can't help but giggle.

Maybe their parents aren't really in the picture anymore, but they'll always have each other to lean on and confide in. On most days, that's more than enough.

* * *

Anna doesn't mean to pounce on Elsa the moment she gets back from class, but Elsa still startles when Anna slides out of her room and into view.

"Hey," Anna says as brightly as she can. "What's up?" She thinks it might be better to pretend their conversation from last night never happened. After all, why dredge that back up when she has to get Elsa and Jack together?

Elsa doesn't seem to buy her cheeriness. "Hello," she replies cautiously. She neatly sidesteps around Anna and heads towards her room.

Anna tags along like an eager pup. "I wanted to thank you for not being angry at me this morning; I totally slept through my alarm…and whatever you did to try and wake me up."

"I figured as much," Elsa says. She turns to give her roommate a look when Anna doesn't budge. "Is there something else you wanted to talk about?"

 _Yeah, can you meet my near-immortal supplier this weekend so he can see if you're fae?_ No, she can't say that. But she's but she's been rehearsing her lines since her population ecology class. She can do this. "I'd like to make this morning up to you," she starts after taking a breath. "I have a friend who's a grad student in biochemistry. He can give you all sorts of advice on applying for school as well as what professors to take. I know you're in a different major right now but he's really nice and this could be like, _really_ helpful. And applications aren't really all that far off once you think about it—"

"Okay!" Elsa cuts her off, sounding exasperated. She steadies her gaze at Anna, who tries to look as innocent as she can. Finally she says, "What's his name?"

"Jack Alkaev," Anna supplies eagerly. "He's teaching a couple classes this semester."

Elsa nods in familiarity. "I've heard that name around campus. Good things, usually. Look," she exhales sharply, the air fanning against Anna's face, "I don't like meeting people, but…this sounds like a good opportunity. So I'll…I guess I can meet him." Her gaze lowers to her feet and in a smaller voice she asks, "Will you be there too?"

Anna blinks. She certainly didn't expect that question. "Umm, I can be," she says unsurely, now going off-script. "I assumed it would be a one-on-one kinda thing. I can be at a nearby table or something." When Elsa opens her mouth to speak, Anna quickly adds, "His office is an insane mess, so I thought it'd be good to talk somewhere else." Last time she went there, she broke three beakers and caused a stack of books to tumble over just by opening the door a little too widely.

"I guess that's fine," Elsa agrees, though she still looks a bit uncertain. "Maybe a…coffee place would be good?"

Anna beams at her. "That's perfect! Is this weekend okay? He's usually busy with stuff so it might be the only time he's available for a while." While it's not entirely a lie, Anna says it mainly because she wanted to know _yesterday_ if Elsa's actually an ice fae or not.

When Elsa only gives her the barest of nods in return, she puts a comforting hand on Elsa's shoulder. "Hey, this will be a good thing, okay? I wouldn't have set it up otherwise. And you can leave whenever you want. Just give me a secret signal and I'll swoop in and save you if you get uncomfortable."

That seems to soothe Elsa somewhat; when she smiles, there's some strength behind it. "I can always bring a frying pan with me," she says in a mock-serious voice, smile widening.

"I know firsthand how much damage you could do with that thing," Anna replies, though she doesn't believe for a second that a frying pan could put a dent in Jack. She drops her hand from Elsa's shoulder, fingers accidentally grazing her arm on the way down.

Elsa stiffens minutely. "Let me know when we'll meet him." She takes a small step backwards, almost leaning against her door. "I'm going to call it an early night, so I'll see you in the morning."

Anna, happiness fading slightly, can only give a small nod before she is left staring at the empty space her roommate had occupied. Perhaps she should be used to Elsa's abrupt departures by now, but she finds that they definitely bother her more now than when they first met.

With an annoyed sigh, she shuffles back to her room and shoots off a quick text to Jack.

- _Elsa agreed to go out and meet you this weekend. Coffee shop preferred_

The answering text comes surprisingly fast.

- _Good. Bean Me Up at 1, Sunday_

"Roger that," Anna mutters. As she brushes her teeth and tucks herself into bed, she wonders how this meeting will go down. Will Jack lay eyes on Elsa and just _know_ what she is? Will they gush to each other about their powers the entire time? Will Anna end up being a third wheel whose presence isn't noticed at all?

Alright, so maybe that last thought is a little selfish—after all, Jack probably hasn't been around another ice fae in a while and who the hell knows what Elsa's story is. So if they're able to connect, good for them.

But whatever happens, Anna almost hopes that Elsa _isn't_ human. She would be forced to continue her horrendous attempts at lying and would never be able to let Elsa fully into her life. And Anna knows if she can't tell the truth to Elsa soon, she might just lose her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While you may have been expecting a more climactic read, this chapter was a necessary (but hopefully enjoyable) evil. I noticed that I have a pattern of even numbered chapters being a lot mellower than odd numbered ones. So that means the next chapter, which will involve Thanksgiving, is going to be _really_ fun.


	7. A Shift In Perspective

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be prepared: this chapter is dense as hell. And I want to add a warning for the violence and cursing at the end of this chapter, as they border on M-rated.

"Does this look okay?" Elsa asks for what must be the hundredth time. She's talking about the business casual outfit she's wearing—a light blue, collared shirt tucked into slim-fitting beige pants. Her hair, instead of being in its usual braid, is twisted into an elegant updo.

" _Yes_ ," Anna says once again, trying not to sound impatient. She wants to go _now_ , but instead Elsa has spent the last twenty minutes agonizing over her appearance. "And you really didn't have to dress up at all, this is just an informal meeting."

Elsa gives her an affronted look, like she can't believe Anna could say something so idiotic. "This is about _grad school_. I'm not going to wear a hoodie and some jeans."

Anna supposes she shouldn't be surprised by her attitude. She's seen this side of Elsa before, the type-A student. She's completely serious when it comes to schoolwork, not allowing the slightest distraction to make her focus waver (not even that time Anna was trying to show her an awesome doodle she drew in Weselton's class). Despite it not being the true intention of this get together, Anna suddenly hopes that Jack can spare some good advice for Elsa.

"You look as gorgeous as you always do," Anna says, fiddling absentmindedly with the keys in her hand.

Elsa pauses in the middle of putting her peacoat on, half of it dangling off her shoulder. "What did you just say?"

Anna huffs and stalks over to her roommate, grabbing her jacket and practically guiding Elsa's arm through the other sleeve. "Don't let it get to your head," she warns with a slight smile. One of Elsa's many charms is that she somehow doesn't seem to know how good looking she is. Anna swears she's seen a few people do double-takes when Elsa walked by them.

Elsa ignores her last words, still focused on the compliment. "Oh, it's definitely going to my head now," she teases, her own lips quirking upwards. "Anna Theron called me 'gorgeous'. That one's going in the vault."

"Is that what you call your brain? Weirdo," she pretends to grimace in embarrassment. The next thing she knows, Elsa's shoving her towards the door. "Hey, wait! I wanna talk about your vault some more—"

"Let's go!" Elsa orders, failing to sound suitably bossy. She suddenly seems _very_ eager to see Jack, judging by the way she hasn't stopped directing Anna towards her car.

"Alright, alright," Anna says as she unlocks the doors. "Just wait, you and Jack are going to have _so_ much in common."

* * *

When they arrive at _Bean Me Up_ , Jack is there, a paper cup in hand. He's sitting on the side of the shop, looking out the window.

She silently points him out to Elsa and is surprised to see her face fall a little. When Anna looks back towards Jack to figure out her reaction, she notices that he's wearing his blue hoodie and some dark jeans. Of course he is.

"I'll be a couple tables over," Anna says quietly. She came prepared with a textbook and highlighter to play the part of 'random student totally not eavesdropping on anyone'. Thankfully the place isn't crowded, so she should be able to hear their conversation well enough.

Once the two of them receive their orders (a medium roast for Anna and a hot chocolate for Elsa), they part ways. Elsa looks back once towards Anna, who gives her an encouraging nod.

When Anna settles in her seat, she sees Jack's eyes flicker towards her and then away in mild amusement. His head soon tilts up towards Elsa, who has slowly made her way over to him. "I'm Jack," he greets her without getting up. "Elsa, I presume?"

She nods, taking in his appearance as she sits down across from him. Seeing the two of them together like this, both with blue eyes, light hair, and pale skin, one could easily assume they're siblings.

_Another piece of evidence in my favor_ , Anna thinks victoriously. _Kristoff is about to be twenty dollars poorer._

But her smugness is short-lived when she realizes there's no sound coming from their table. She hones back in on them and finds herself looking at an odd situation. Jack…hasn't stopped staring at Elsa, who's already beginning to look uncomfortable.

Anna can imagine what Elsa is seeing; the first time she met Jack, she was fourteen years old. Something behind his gaze was unnatural and seemingly all-knowing, hinting at his true age. Anna's since gotten used to it, but it took a while to realize he usually preferred to act like a young man rather than a centuries old creature.

"Umm, I'm a junior biology major," Elsa starts uncertainly, probably hoping Jack will respond like a normal person. She takes a quick, nervous sip of her drink and continues, "So far my GPA is 3.8 but I should be able to raise it before applications start. I know the genetics program here is really competitive and—"

Jack cuts her off with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Why are you interested in genetics?" he asks abruptly. He slouches in his seat, trying to look comfortable but failing miserably—his fists are balled up on the table and one of his knees is bobbing up and down, something Anna's never seen him do before.

"Oh, I…" Elsa says, taken off-guard by his rudeness. "I want to study mutations in humans. Specifically compound heterozygosity and the diseases associated with it."

Anna has _no_ idea what that is, but Jack nods in understanding. "Any particular reason why? Perhaps your parents were interested in that field?"

"I'd rather not talk about my parents," Elsa answers with an unexpected hardness in her tone, subtly warning Jack not to continue down that line of questioning.

But Jack has never been the best at understanding social cues. "Surely they have some sort of impact on your studies," he prods, "Perhaps one of them was a scientist as well?"

Elsa now has a frown etched into her face. "Can you tell me about recommendation letters? What should I be asking my professors to put in?"

Jack sighs, disappointed at her lack of forthcoming information. "What your profs think of your performance in labs carries a lot of weight. Make sure they know how badly you'd like to be in the genetics program, and be sure to go to office hours frequently so they know more than just your name and grade."

"Thank you," Elsa says, having been nodding along to his advice. "What extracurriculars do admissions look for?"

Jack's mouth twists, looking like he wanted to ask a question of his own. After taking a sip of his drink, he decides to oblige her with an answer. "Internships look really good, especially if they take place in one of our labs. Then you'd be under the supervision of one of the professors, who could give you a solid recommendation. And there's always clubs and honor societies to add to your résumé."

She opens her mouth again, presumably to ask another question, when Jack cuts her off. "How long have you lived in Arendelle? I don't think I've seen you around before."

"My whole life," she answers stiffly. It seems like anything personal has her going on the defensive, making Jack's fact-finding mission all the more difficult. "What do you think of the faculty in your department?"

"They're fine," Jack says with a shrug, his answer just as forthcoming as her own.

The table is silent for a moment, with both of them starting to become impatient with one another. Elsa throws a glance at Anna, who gives her not-so-confident thumbs up. Maybe setting this up under the guise of an academic meeting was the wrong approach.

Jack apparently agrees. "Moving away from the grad school topic momentarily," he begins, and Anna already feels a sense of foreboding. "Are you currently seeing anyone?"

"Excuse me?" Elsa says flatly, completely taken off guard. "What does that have to do with anything?"

_Oh god_ , Anna thinks in horror, _is he trying to turn this into a date?_ There's no way to tell him to stop whatever the _hell_ he thinks he's doing without catching Elsa's attention. All she can do is hopelessly watch the impending train wreck.

Jack gives a shrug. "You're very good looking, there must be a significant someone in your life."

Elsa once again looks in Anna's direction for a moment, in what Anna can only assume is confusion. She's in agreement—Jack should _not_ be taking this path. Only once has Anna ever directly asked Elsa about her love life and she was met with deafening silence.

"Why is this relevant?" she finally asks, only the barest thread of civility in her voice. "I'm here to talk about AU's grad program, nothing else."

"It's relevant because I'm interested," Jack says, seemingly unaware of Elsa's frustration. "In you," he adds belatedly. The smile he gives Elsa looks almost pained.

Anna chokes on a sip of coffee. Could he be any more of an idiot?

"Just… _tell_ me about the program, please," Elsa grates out. Her paper cup is slowly being crushed in her hand. She releases her death grip on it and sets it down with a _thump_.

"Only if you agree to go on a date with me," Jack quips, his smile now looking slightly unhinged and not at all sincere. He reaches out for her hand but Elsa jerks away before they touch. The sudden movement causes her hot chocolate to topple off the table and splash across the floor.

Without a word, Elsa slides her chair back and stalks out of the café. Jack looks after her with a bewildered expression, not seeming to realize Anna is now storming over to him.

She slaps her hands down on the table, gaining his attention. "That was a disaster!" Anna hisses, too mad to take Elsa's vacated seat. "What the hell was that pathetic display?"

His eyes flash dangerously, reminding Anna of just who she's talking to. Before she can backtrack, he says, "I wasn't going to get anything out of her at the rate we were going. I thought she would be more amenable to personal questions if this was a date. Not that I would actually want to," he adds with a look of discomfort, as if the idea of going out with Elsa makes him physically ill.

"It showed," Anna retorts, angry on Elsa's behalf. "And when was the last time you were on a date?"

Jack pinches the bridge of his nose. "A long time ago. I had forgotten how to act." For the first time since she's met him, he looks completely unsure of himself.

"I don't know what you'd be like on an actual date, but I bet it wouldn't be pretty," Anna says, not feeling bad enough for Jack to give him a break.

"Like I said, it's been a while," Jack mutters unhappily.

Anna continues, "If it were me, I would've dated the hell out of her!" She blinks in surprise as soon as the exclamation passes her lips.

"Then maybe you should," Jack snaps back. "I've obviously ruined any chance to learn more about her."

"Were you able to get anything from that conversation, anything at all?" Anna presses. She'll have time to think about her weird comments later.

"You're most likely right about her," Jack admits. "She might be at least a little fae. But avoiding the topic of her parents plus the fact that she's interested in gene mutations leads me to ask a different question."

"And what is that?" Anna asks, relieved that Jack seems to be agreeing with her for once.

Jack looks her straight in the eyes and says, "I'm wondering if _she_ knows she's fae."

"That's…possible?" Anna says after a shocked silence. How can you be unaware of what you are?

Jack rests his chin on the palm of his hand, beginning to slip back into his usual competent self. "Sometimes people slip through the cracks. There's a chance her parents, for whatever reason, didn't want to tell her, which could be why I can't find the name 'Norling' anywhere. And unfortunately, I can't exactly give her a pamphlet that says 'Your Ice Powers and You'."

"I suppose not," Anna sighs. "Is there anything I can do?"

"It's a sensitive situation. You should only talk to her about her powers if you _actively_ see her using them. As in, she creates snow in your apartment again or something." When Anna looks at him with a question in her eyes, he quickly says, "And for god's sake, do _not_ try to startle her into using them. Someone might end up getting hurt."

"Fine," Anna says in disappointment. She turns her head towards the door. "I have to go, Elsa's waiting for me. Let me know if you have any more brilliant ideas."

With that, she turns on her heel and heads outside. Her roommate is pacing back and forth in front of her car as she lets her hair out of its restrictive bun. She shakes her head slightly and her hair flows behind her in waves of pale blonde.

Anna slows to a stop and just watches her. Despite living with her, she's rarely seen Elsa with her hair down and she take a moment to lament the fact Elsa doesn't seem to like it loose. Because while Elsa's clearly beautiful no matter what, she's even more striking with her hair cast down around her.

Anna takes a moment to ponder why she's suddenly feeling a bit higher on the Kinsey scale than usual, but it passes when Elsa finally notices her and stops pacing. _Here it comes_ , Anna thinks.

Before Elsa can explode at her, she jumps in with an, "I am _so_ sorry about that. I know you really wanted to learn more about the genetics program—"

Elsa cuts her off with an angry shake of her head. "Did you really think I wanted to meet with some random grad student?" she says, taking a step closer to Anna. "Sure, it would have been nice to hear some advice from him, but I did it for _you_ , Anna. Because _you_ seemed excited for me to see him. Were you in on this—this whole date thing?" She says 'date' like it's the ugliest word she can think of.

"No!" Anna exclaims immediately. "I had no idea he was going to do that. I swear he's actually a good guy most of the time. I guess he just isn't around women all that much." That might very well be true. In all the years she's known him, he's never once seemed the least bit interested in romance. Anna wonders how long it's really been since he was in any sort of relationship.

Elsa still looks a bit suspicious. She blows out a huff of air, her breath crystallizing in front of her. "Fine," she sighs in something close to defeat, as if she's getting tired of forgiving Anna so easily. "But there's…there's something I might as well tell you anyways. So something like this won't happen again." She suddenly bows her head and mutters something at the ground.

Anna closes the distance between them so she can hear Elsa better. "What was that?"

When Elsa looks up at her, her cheeks are bright red. Anna's seen her blush numerous times, but never like _this_. "I s-said…I don't like…guys. Romantically." Her eyes widen after the words come out but she keeps her eyes locked on Anna, watching her carefully.

"Oh," Anna says blankly. Elsa's…gay. Between this and the fact she just found out she's fae…Anna feels like the most oblivious idiot (and worst friend) on the planet. She continues dumbly, "I mean…uh, yeah."

Alright, now she's freaking Elsa out with her lackluster response. Elsa furrows her brow, looking for, and _needing_ , more of a reaction. Anna takes a steadying breath. "Thanks for telling me," she says, hoping the smile she's giving Elsa looks as genuine as it feels. "And I promise I'm not going to treat you any differently. Why would I? You're still Elsa."

Beautiful, sarcastic, tightly-wound Elsa. An idea comes to Anna, and she excitedly opens the car door for her friend. "We're going to take a detour on the way back home," she says, "as an apology for today."

Anna may not be able to tell her everything about her job or Elsa's _own_ life, but she can at least show her this place.

* * *

Once Anna parks the car near the edge of the forest and the two begin to walk, it doesn't take long for the ground beneath their feet to become rocky. They begin a gradual descent, Elsa having to clutch onto Anna's shoulder occasionally as her shoes weren't made for the rough terrain. Soon, they come to the place Anna spent much of her childhood in.

The clearing holds a few gnarled, ancient trees as well as a pond and rock features large enough to climb. Walls of stone form nearly a perfect circle around them, the only break being the narrow entrance they came through.

Anna looks towards Elsa, wondering what she'll make of the place. What she doesn't expect is a barely-suppressed smirk on her pink lips. "What?" Anna asks, trying not to sound too defensive.

"Oh nothing, nothing," Elsa says innocently. When Anna levels a glare at her, she goes on, "This just feels like something out of _Twilight_ , that's all."

" _Twilight_?" Anna repeats, wrinkling her nose at the book's mention.

Elsa nods and begins to walk over to one of the smaller rocks. "I'm pretty sure the vampire took his victim to some clearing in the woods. You're not going to turn me into a vampire, are you?"

"Dear god, no!" Anna says with what must be a touch too much seriousness, as Elsa's smirk is replaced by a raised eyebrow. But really, vampires are nothing to joke about because they are seriously creepy and there's much to-do when one turns a human.

She continues speaking before Elsa can make another unsavory comparison, "I mean…my mom taught me archery here, as well as other things. This place holds a lot of good memories for me."

Those memories begin to well up behind Anna's eyes without her permission. For a moment, she sees her mom standing where Elsa is, showing her the proper grip to have on a knife. The two of them rolling around in the snow for a few tense minutes until Anna wins her first ever hand-to-hand fight against her mom. An image of them splashing water at each other on a particularly warm day, her mom squealing when Anna manages to scoop up a handful and pour it down the back of her shirt.

"Hey, are you alright?" Elsa asks and the past shatters around her, jolting Anna back to the present. Elsa's gloved hand comes out almost close enough to touch Anna's cheek. She drops it at the last moment, but her teeth worry at her lower lip as she looks at her.

"O-oh," Anna stutters, her voice coming out weaker than she thought it would. Her hand comes up to her face and she wipes away a tear. "Oh god, I'm sorry. I wanted to show you this place because it means a lot to me. I didn't think I would actually _cry_. That's so pathetic—"

"Hey," Elsa says, and then she's suddenly embracing Anna. Anna tenses for a moment at the unexpected contact. Before she can wrap her arms around Elsa, the other woman pulls away. "This place is beautiful," she says firmly, standing so close Anna can count the individual freckles going across her nose and cheekbones. "I'm glad you brought me here."

Anna releases an unsteady breath. "Y-yeah, I was hoping you would." She takes a seat on a rock so she's facing the pond.

Once she's seated as well, Elsa looks at her with serious eyes. "What happened to her?" she asks quietly.

Anna freezes, not expecting her to ask _that_ question. After a moment of silence, she clears her throat. "She…she passed away. Three years ago, just a few months before I started college." In a smaller voice, she says, "I was there."

The details are less than pretty. Anna is suddenly glad Elsa can't know anything about her job, as she is in no mood right now to relive the event.

She flinches slightly at the unexpected sensation of Elsa's arm wrapping around her again, pulling her in until her head is resting against Elsa's shoulder. Her roommate runs a soothing hand over Anna's hair, causing her to sigh against her neck. "My mom died, too," Elsa murmurs, voice somber and warm in Anna's ear. "I was sixteen when it happened, but she was sick my whole life. It was almost a relief when she passed because it meant she wasn't in pain anymore."

Anna brings her hand around Elsa's waist and grips at her jacket. "I'm sorry," she whispers, because that's the only thing she can think to say. During the few times Elsa spoke of her mom, her tone was always wistful and a little sad. Now she knows why.

Neither of them elaborate any further on their parents, Anna preferring to stare out at the pond and the falling snow.

When she finally looks up at her roommate, Elsa is peering down at her, snowflakes caught in her eyelashes.

Anna gives her a wobbly smile. "I want to tell you again that I don't care whether you're gay or straight," _or fae_ "I care about you no matter what. You're a really great person."

Finally detaching from Anna, she stands stiffly and to Anna's shock, tears begin to well up in her eyes. "Hey," Anna jumps up to wipe one of them away before it has the chance to travel down Elsa's face. "I didn't mean to reduce both of us to watery messes."

"You're…" Elsa sniffles, valiantly trying to hold herself together, "you're a really good person too, even though you frustrate the _hell_ out of me sometimes."

Anna laughs. "Yeah, that's me alright. How about we get out of here and maybe watch a sappy movie or something? We can…come back some other time," she phrases the last part uncertainly. They hadn't exactly spent much time here, and maybe Elsa was only saying she liked the place to spare Anna's feelings.

As if sensing Anna's musings, Elsa gives her the most brilliant smile Anna's ever seen. It positively lights up her face and something inside Anna's chest clenches painfully at the sight. "I want to come back here with you," Elsa says in no uncertain terms. "And I'm glad you've shared something about yourself with me."

"S-sure," Anna says, feeling a little dazed in the afterglow of her smile. And the fact that she can make Elsa so happy just by _telling_ her something about herself…that feels pretty great, too.

"Are you coming?" Elsa asks a few moments later. Anna blinks and realizes the other woman's already a good twenty feet away from her.

"Of course!" Anna hurries to catch up with her. Elsa gives her a questioning smile but Anna just gives her a push in the direction of the car. For the rest of the walk, they're close enough for the backs of their hands to occasionally brush against one another.

* * *

On Wednesday, Jack sends her a text right as her last class of the day is about to start. ' _I have another theory'_ is all it says. Anna knows it must be about Elsa and she suppresses the urge to roll her eyes. It seems like grad students are filled with nothing but theories—theories about their theses and dissertations and experiments…and apparently about a certain blonde woman.

Since Dr. Mowgli doesn't tolerate texting in his class, she waits until his lecture is finished until she replies, carefully weaving through the waves of people on campus.

- _What's this theory of yours?_

Jack responds immediately.

- _Only one of her parents is fae, the other probably human. Do u know if they separated?_

She feels a sudden flash of guilt. While Jack's been turning over the mystery of Elsa over in his head, she hasn't done anything about his requests for information. Since the botched meeting at the café and the 'mutual sharing and crying' incident as she calls it, she really hasn't seen much of Elsa. She knows the other woman has a few big tests coming up and it feels like Elsa has practically been living at the library for the last few days.

_-I don't know yet_

_-Then find out. If I'm right, she might have been left w/ the human parent. Could be why she doesn't know what she is_

Anna stares hard at the screen, bumping into someone before remembering where she is. She mumbles an apology and makes her way to a nearby bench so she can text without hitting anyone else.

Jack's theory is good, as far as theories go, but there's one thing she knows that Jack doesn't.

- _Elsa was homeschooled until she was 16. Does that help or hurt your idea?_

Jack is silent for so long that Anna's backside starts to go numb from sitting on the cold metal. Wondering if he's suddenly forgotten about her, she stands up and rubs her hands together. There's no reason for her to stay here when she can just as easily text him from the confines of her warm bedroom.

She's crossing the courtyard outside the science library when a strong hand tugs on her shoulder. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?" a voice demands in her ear.

"Holy shit!" Anna nearly yells at the sudden intrusion. She turns and sees Jack staring daggers at her. "When did 'Hello, Anna' become 'Scare the crap out of Anna'?" She regards him a bit more carefully. Despite the temperature being in the teens, he's only wearing a dark, frayed sweater, no scarf or gloves in sight. "You should put some more clothes on," she advises him out of sheer habit, "at least look like you're suffering with the masses."

He glowers at her in response. "You have time to offer me fashion advice but not to tell me _crucial information_ about Elsa?"

She winces. "It kinda slipped my mind until just now. And what were you doing, stalking me?"

"I saw you from the library!" Jack says, looking offended. "And don't change the subject."

"Fine," Anna says in exasperation. "I'm sorry. Elsa told me this before I even knew she was fae, so yeah, I forgot. Does it really matter?"

"It might," Jack says. He nudges her to continue walking and she does, hoping she can get to her car before hypothermia sets in. "Homeschooling might mean her parents _did_ know what she was, which means she might as well."

God, it feels like Jack is making this so much more confusing than it needs to be. "Look, at this point in time does it really matter what she or her parents know? We know she's fae, and the rest can be figured out when we actually have some _fucking proof!_ " The outburst is completely unintended; it's cold and she's tired, Thanksgiving is nearly here, and while she'll never admit it, she's just as impatient as Jack is about confirming Elsa's fae-ness.

Jack stops walking completely, forcing Anna to do the same. When she turns to look at him, she sucks in a surprised breath. His eyes, normally cerulean in color, have turned dark and stormy. His fists clench and new goosebumps appear on Anna's skin, causing her to shiver involuntarily.

"It matters," Jack says carefully, aware that his anger is physically affecting her, "because she's all I have right now." When Anna opens her mouth to object, he gives her a small, sharp shake of his head. "Don't mistake my meaning. I haven't seen another ice fae in half a _century_. You have no idea what it's like to be isolated from your own kind for so long, and all because there's barely enough of you in the world to populate a city. So it matters because she's my kin, and I look after my own. I was too eager with her earlier and it scared her. I messed up my chances of talking to her for now, but you still can."

Immediately after he's done talking, Anna feels the air around her become just the slightest bit warmer. His eyes lighten and he looks past her, back towards the library. "I have to head back," he says absently, as if he didn't just freak the hell out of Anna.

Before he leaves, Anna feels a tugging sensation around her head and sees her cream colored beanie (complete with a matching pom) in his hands. He quickly fits it over his hair and walk away.

"Hey, that's mine!" she calls out, the words feeling childish on her tongue.

He does half a spin, walking backwards while he says, "You were the one who told me to look normal. I'm just following your advice." With that, he turns back around.

Anna stares after him in disbelief. "You don't look normal!" she yells in vain, as he's probably ignoring her. "That's clearly a woman's beanie!"

But her annoyance is quick to fade as she continues on to her car and thinks about what Jack said. It now makes sense why he was so quick to doubt her proof about Elsa—he probably didn't want to get his hopes up. Anna had no idea ice fae were so rare, and Jack's brash behavior at the café is now understandable.

For Jack's sake as well as her own, she hopes Elsa will reveal herself soon.

* * *

 

The rest of Anna's suspension passes in a painfully slow manner. Elsa is still rarely at the apartment, saying she's been studying and researching internships at school. Even though she clearly doesn't like him, she's been following all of Jack's advice about getting into the genetics program.

Her absence, combined with having no cases, is slowly making Anna go crazy. On the Friday before break, she takes the time to write out the report her hunting supervisor wanted. When she meets with him on the weekend, it's just as unpleasant as she expected—much of his lecture focuses on how disappointed he is with her and how her actions reflected poorly on him. But in the end, he tells her that mistakes are bound to happen and that he's glad she is doing well.

She feels a sort of persistent hollowness in her after the meeting, an empty ache in her chest where hunting usually took residence. She's been out in the wild, studying and hunting creatures, since childhood nearly nonstop. Now that she has so much free time, she's not exactly sure what to do with it.

"Kristoff," she groans one day after class, "I'm so _bored_. What the hell do normal people do all day?" They're at his place, Anna hanging off the couch with her hair brushing the floor. Sven is laying right in front of her, and he cocks his head upon seeing her upside down.

"Ask Elsa," Kristoff replies without looking up from his laptop. "Because I sure as hell don't know either."

"I can't ask her; she's out being productive," Anna says, trying not to pout. Getting back on track with her griping, she adds, "I bought coloring books, Kristoff. _Children's coloring books._ Who does that?" There's now a small stack of them on her desk, half of them already filled in.

"Yes, I did hear that mental patients use those to keep calm," Kristoff says sagely. When she pokes him with her toe, he grabs her ankle and pushes it away from him. With a very undignified squeak, she slides off the couch and almost lands on Sven.

Kristoff looks down at the display and rolls his eyes. "You're almost due to start hunting again, so quit your whining and feel lucky you're missing the full moon."

Anna considers that. It's true that she won't mind hanging back during a full moon, but that means others will have more work to do in her absence—including Kristoff.

"You're right, I'm sorry," she says immediately, head now resting against Sven's back. "I just wish I could do _something_ useful. It's driving me nuts."

"Not everything you do has to have a purpose," Kristoff reminds her. "Just try to relax for the next week while you can. I know both Hiccup and I asked for Thanksgiving break off, so you'll definitely end up with some overtime cases then."

Anna nods, feeling a bit better. Thanksgiving and Christmas were the two most popular times for hunters to request leave. Since others usually used the time off to be with their families, Anna liked to volunteer to work extra shifts—after all, the only thing she'd do on the holidays is mope aimlessly around her apartment.

Kristoff shoots her a thoughtful look over the top of his laptop. "Now don't shoot the messenger for saying this…" he starts, and Anna already feels suspicious. "But the trolls wanted me to double-check that you wouldn't be joining us. They're making some sort of wild mushroom stew they thought you'd be interested in."

Anna gives him a small smile. "That's really nice of them, but my answer is still 'no'. I promise I'll visit them soon, just not now."

Kristoff nods, having expected her response. "I'll let them know. And _I_ promise to bring back some leftovers." His expression brightens. "I'm going to help Bulda bake some sort of sweet potato casserole. It'll be _awesome_."

Anna hums her agreement, eyes trained on the ceiling. The thing is, she'd _love_ to visit the trolls with Kristoff. But the timing is just…not right for her. Not yet, at least. She doesn't know how long it'll take until Thanksgiving seems like just another day. This will only be the third year, after all. The third anniversary of her being well and truly alone.

She tears her gaze away from the ceiling when it's in danger of becoming blurry in her eyes. "Got a movie we can watch?" she abruptly asks Kristoff, hoping he can come up with a distraction for her. "Preferably something with a copious amount of blood?"

His eyebrows scrunch in thought before he snaps his fingers. " _Zombieland_!" he answers, proud of his choice. "I'm pretty sure you haven't seen it before."

She shakes her head, only vaguely recalling the title. "Fire it up, then."

As Anna goes to the kitchen and grabs them both a drink, Kristoff clicks a few button on his computer and pulls the movie up. By the time the gory opening credits begin, Anna is curled up next to him and he's placed a warm, comforting arm around her shoulders.

* * *

Finally, and after much boredom on her part, Anna's suspension is lifted on the twenty-first. However, her joy is short lived when her pager refuses to utter even a single beep over the next few days. She's more than ready to capture or kill all the wayward creatures she can, but there's nothing she can do except spare a glance at the pager every hour. Apparently the monsters of Arendelle are on their best behavior, leaving Anna frustrated and on edge.

Before she's ready to acknowledge it, Thanksgiving is upon her. Anna plans on spending as much time as humanly possible in her room, but the sound of Elsa moving around the apartment around three in the afternoon arouses her curiosity. Stretching, she shuffles into the living room and squints at her. Elsa raises a hand in greeting before self-consciously combing back a few loose strands of hair. She's half dressed, wearing her favorite pair of soft gray sweatpants and a violet, long-sleeved shirt.

"Hey, stranger," Anna says by way of greeting. "You going somewhere?"

Elsa nods as she takes her clothes out of the dryer. "Rapunzel's picking me up in half an hour. I'm staying over at her parents' until Sunday."

"Oh," Anna says, trying to mask her disappointment. Elsa hadn't mentioned anything about visiting her family, but maybe that was the obvious assumption to make. She just didn't realize she would be gone for the rest of the week.

Elsa closes the dryer door and turns to look fully at Anna. "This was kind of a last minute thing," she says, as if reading Anna's mind. "I was just going to be over for dinner tonight, but Rapunzel really wanted me to stay longer."

Anna waves her off, "Yeah, of course. I hope you have a good time." She falls into a chair at the kitchen table and eyes the box of poptarts next to her. Dragging the box across the table until it's right in front of her, she plucks a foil packet out of its depths.

The kitchen is silent as Elsa hurries back to her room and returns with a small duffel. Anna observes her roommate as she carefully places her clean clothes into the bag and zips it up.

"What about you?" Elsa asks as she places the bag on the floor near the door. "What are your plans?"

Anna struggles through a bite of poptart, instantly regretting her decision to not toast it. Once her mouth is clear of food, she replies, "I'm not really sure yet. Maybe I'll make some spaghetti or something."

For the first time since Anna's seen her this morning, Elsa comes to a complete standstill. "What?" she says in confusion. "I don't understand."

Anna sinks a little in her chair, not expecting her to react this way. "There's nothing to really understand," she says, suddenly focusing hard on her breakfast. "I'm staying here for Thanksgiving, it's no big deal."

"What about Kristoff?" Elsa demands. Ignoring the fact that Rapunzel will be coming by in the next fifteen minutes, she slips into the seat across from Anna and waits for her response.

Anna shrugs, mildly amused that Elsa automatically thinks she would be spending the day with him. "He'll be having dinner with his own family." Since turning sixteen, he's probably spent more time with the trolls than his own parents. The trolls consider him one of their own, and he wouldn't have it any other way.

"But…that means you'll be spending Thanksgiving dinner alone," Elsa says slowly, her eyebrows drawing together.

Anna just shrugs again, as if saying ' _that's the way it goes_ '. Elsa's far more invested in the holiday than she would've thought possible. It's actually kinda cute to see her so riled up about something that doesn't involve her safety.

"No one should spend Thanksgiving alone!" Elsa exclaims, forcing an unexpected snort out of Anna. Elsa glares at her.

"I had no idea you thought so highly of the holiday," Anna says teasingly. "But I promise you, I'll survive the day alone. I have for the last two years," she adds, her playfulness fading slightly.

"Two years—" Elsa starts before realization dawns across her face. "Because of your mom, right?" she asks, guilt lacing her question.

Anna gives her a tight smile but doesn't answer. Let Elsa think this has to do with her mom—the real reason is a bit more complex and definitely not a conversation to have right before Elsa leaves.

Elsa gets a worrying gleam in her eyes and says, "You should come—" when there's a knock on the door. "Rapunzel's early," she says with a frown.

"Well, have fun!" Anna hops up from her chair, hoping to make a quick retreat to her room. She knows exactly what Elsa was about to say and she doesn't want to turn down another dinner invitation.

"Anna!" Elsa calls after her, and Anna freezes. "I think you should come with us," she says as she makes her way to the door and opens it. "I'm sure Rapunzel would love that."

"What would Rapunzel love?" the blonde in question cheerfully asks. She steps into the hall and gives Elsa a quick hug.

"If Anna came to eat with us," Elsa answers innocently.

Rapunzel doesn't even hesitate with her answer. "That'd be great! Mom and dad would love to meet a friend of Elsa's. And Flynn's coming too, so the more the merrier!"

Anna glowers at Elsa. It's harder to say 'no' in the light of Rapunzel's smiling face, but the last thing she was planning on doing today was socializing. "That's really sweet, but I'm fine staying here. I wouldn't want to inconvenience your parents."

"Oh, you wouldn't be!" Rapunzel says. "They would be happy to have you."

Elsa comes into the conversation, a devious smile starting to form. "Do you remember all those nights you were out doing _mysterious things_ and I had to eat dinner alone? This would make up for all of that."

"Oh, that's not even fair!" Anna exclaims. "I haven't even gone out lately!" At least her inactivity is finally good for something; a lame excuse not to go to dinner.

"True," Elsa concedes, "but I— _we_ think you should come with us. Just for dinner."

Anna bites her lip, trying to stop herself from frowning. Maybe a dinner with Elsa's family wouldn't be so bad. It might be the only time she'll have to spend with Elsa during break.

Sensing Anna's hesitation, Elsa takes a step closer to her. In a voice low enough for Rapunzel not to hear, she says, "It honestly would mean a lot to me."

Anna shakes her head even as she gives her roommate an exasperated smile. "I can't believe you're guilting me into this," she says with a sigh.

"Yes!" Elsa and Rapunzel cheer in unison. Elsa points towards Anna's room. "Get some clothes on and we'll head out."

After doing what she's told (and hoping her sweater and jeans will be acceptable), she reconvenes with the blondes. Elsa's changed out of her sweatpants and into a pair of black jeans, making Anna feel better about her own wardrobe choices.

Anna opts to take her own car and follow Rapunzel over as there's a chance she might have a case tonight. That alone should have deterred her from agreeing to dinner, but she has _a lot_ to make up for where Elsa's concerned. If dinner would make her happy, Anna will smile and pretend everything's alright.

The driveway Rapunzel steers her car towards leads up to a huge house, complete with a fancy gate and two turrets at either end of the house. _Damn, Elsa's family is loaded_ , is the impressed thought Anna has. Which begs the question of why she lives in an (admittedly tiny) apartment with a (legitimately strange) roommate.

She parks her car behind Rapunzel's and meets the women at the door, trying to tamp down a sudden surge of anxiety. Elsa gives her a gentle smile that eases some of her nerves as Rapunzel unlocks the door.

"Mom, dad!" she yells through the foyer. "We have a surprise guest joining us!"

A man and a woman—whom Anna assumes to be her parents—descend the grand staircase, looking almost regal. Rapunzel bares a startlingly strong resemblance to her mother, the only real difference being the older woman having darker hair. Her father looks stoic, with a carefully maintained, salt-and-pepper beard.

He extends a large hand to Anna, which she shakes firmly. "I'm Brendan and this is my wife Sarah. Welcome to our home…" he pauses, giving Anna a chance to introduce herself.

"Anna. Anna Theron. Good to meet you both," she says with a small smile.

"Oh, Anna!" Sarah says, faint recognition flickering in her blue eyes at the name. "Is this the same Anna—"

Elsa suddenly grabs Anna's wrist and pulls her up the stairs. "Let's see my old room, shall we?" she asks as Rapunzel starts to giggle.

"Am I missing something?" Anna asks, wondering if Rapunzel's parents have heard anything about her.

"No!" Elsa exclaims. "They probably had you mixed up with someone else."

"Sure…" Rapunzel chortles behind them. "They know of _so many_ 'Anna's', don't they?" She's about to add something when a familiar figure rounds the corner of the hall. " _Flynn_!" she squeals, running towards him at top speed and jumping into his arms.

The man spins Rapunzel around in his arms and puts her back on the ground. "Hey, guys," he says to Anna and Elsa, unable to keep the giant grin off his face from seeing his girlfriend.

Anna raises a hand in greeting and Elsa nods. "Let's seek shelter from an impending makeout session," Elsa stage-whispers to Anna. "It's really gross."

"I take offense to that!" Flynn exclaims as he allows himself to be steered down the hall by an eager Rapunzel.

The blonde throws them a wave over her shoulder. "Get ready to eat dinner an hour from now!"

Elsa looks after them in amusement and points towards a door. "This one was my room."

Anna follows her, curious as to what the space will look like. The room is bigger than both of the ones in their apartment combined, but it's mostly emptied of personal possessions. But the bed has fresh sheets on it and there's a framed picture on the nightstand next to it.

Anna plops down on the floor with her back against the bed. Elsa joins her after shutting the door, stretching her legs out in front of them. "So…" Anna starts, "what have you been up to lately? Unless I'm driving us to class, I feel like I haven't seen you in a while."

"Yeah," Elsa says with a tired sigh, "I've been busy lately, haven't I? But I think I'm on my way to getting an internship with the biology lab. It won't be anything fancy, but I'll get to know the staff better and hopefully learn a lot of new things."

"That's great!" Anna says enthusiastically. "You'll do a kick ass job, I know it."

Elsa pinkens slightly at the praise. "Thanks," she says in an almost shy voice. She nudges Anna's elbow with her own. "And what about you? I notice that you haven't had any new injuries."

Anna chuckles nervously. It's a lot easier to be injury-free when there's been no creatures trying to kill her. "Yeah, it's been a rather uneventful few weeks."

Elsa purses her lips, humor now gone. "You're never going to tell me what you've been up to, are you?"

"What, my injuries can't be from asshole animals who don't appreciate being saved?" Anna asks, wanting to lighten the mood.

"They could be," Elsa admits, "but they're not." She says it with such confidence that Anna can't think of a response. Elsa goes on, "Maybe I wanted to believe you were rescuing animals because the other explanations were too…too unsettling. But you're possibly the world's worst liar. I don't know what you and Kristoff do at night, but I know it's something dangerous. I just…don't want to see you get hurt anymore."

Anna swallows hard. "You know," she says slowly, "I might actually be able to tell you soon." It's as close to an admission of dishonesty about her cover job as she can get. She wishes Elsa could realize that.

The other woman tilts her head back until it rests on her comforter. "I really hope so," she says, though she still sounds unhappy.

Anna grasps at another strand of conversation, as this one isn't exactly fun. "What's this?" she blurts out, reaching for the framed picture near her shoulder.

The picture shows a beautiful blonde woman smiling at whoever's behind the camera. Between the hair, sharp cheekbones, and small nose, it can only be Elsa's mom. "O-oh," Anna stutters out. This conversation might be even worse.

But Elsa simply takes the picture and rubs a contemplative thumb over her mother's face. "Her name was Irene," she says softly. "She really was the most beautiful person I've ever seen. Even through her sickness, she glowed."

Anna stays silent, not wanting to break Elsa out of her reminiscing. "This was taken before I was born, back when she smiled more. She said my dad took it."

"Dad?" Anna echoes, because Elsa's never once mentioned the man.

"Yeah," she says faintly. She lowers the photo and stares at Anna for a hard moment, apparently coming to a decision to say more. "The truth is…I've never met him. Not once. The only reason I even know what he looks like is because my mom had a picture of him." She gives the room a sweeping gaze. "It used to be in here, but it's probably in the attic now.

"I sometimes wonder what parts of him are in me," she continues, staring off towards the corner of the room. "Do I get some of my intelligence from him? How about my height and my freckles? What would he think of me if we met today?" she laughs in a self-depreciating manner. "It kind of sucks, not knowing who your dad is."

"Sometimes it's better not to know," Anna murmurs, mostly to herself.

But now Elsa is staring at her with an unreadable expression. "How could it possibly be better?" she asks stiffly. It sounds like she's refraining from adding a more heated question, wanting to give Anna a fair chance to answer.

_Shit, I shouldn't have said anything_. But it's too late to stay quiet now. "My father…" she begins, already feeling years-old anger firing through her, "he wasn't… _isn't_ a good man."

This clearly didn't go in the direction Elsa thought it would, if her look of surprise is anything to go by. She gives her a hesitant nod, looking like she wants to know more but is unwilling to pry.

Anna forges on, not wanting to stop now. "When my mom died, my father…he didn't take it well. He was a bit of a womanizer before" _and after_ "he met her, but she was what kept him anchored to a somewhat stable life. When she wasn't there anymore, he kind of…reverted back to his old ways." Anna remembers women entering and leaving the house at strange hours, their heels clicking against the hardwood floor and their giggles reaching her room.

"So when he offered to pay for my first apartment, I gladly accepted. It meant that I wouldn't have to be in the same space as him anymore, because I felt like I slowly suffocating whenever we were together. I started my freshman year promising to visit every weekend if our jobs would allow it. But after my mom died, he started taking a ridiculous amount of hours and we ended up seeing each other just twice during the first part of fall semester."

Anna squeezes her eyes shut, willing herself not to tear up. "He called me a few weeks before Thanksgiving, saying that he doesn't know if we can spend the break together. But I had already decided that we should at least be with each other for the first holiday after mom. I went to our house on Thanksgiving day, hoping to surprise him. When I knocked on the door, a stranger answered."

She brings her knees up to her chest and loops her arms around them. "I came home for Thanksgiving to find another family living in the house I grew up in," she says in a hard voice. "The man who came to the door explained that Alaric Theron had sold him the house almost a month ago. He looked so sad for me that he invited me to join his family for dinner. I…politely declined. As I went back to my apartment, one thought kept repeating itself in my head, like it was on some kind of infinite loop. 'He was never going to tell me. He was never going to tell me he left.'"

Anna moves until she's in front of Elsa so she can reach out for her shoulders. Elsa is trembling slightly under her touch, and her eyes have a watery sheen to them. "It might be good that you don't know who your dad is. Because if he left you and your mom, he probably didn't deserve either of you," she says fiercely. "Both of you needed someone to support you, not someone who would run away like a _coward_."

Her last word seems to echo through the room before settling between them. Elsa's staring at her like she's never seen her before, lips parted slightly. Anna yanks her hands away from Elsa like she's been burned, heart hammering in her chest.

Fuck, she overstepped. Big time. She called her dad a coward, practically spit the word in her face. Before she can gather the courage to apologize, there's a knock on the door.

Rapunzel's muffled voice says, "Dinner's almost done, guys! Can you come help us set the table?"

Elsa's silent for a moment too long, her eyes still focused on Anna even as she answers, "We'll be right out."

Anna breaks the gaze first, feeling ashamed of herself. How could she say those things on Thanksgiving? The holiday's already ruined for her, but that doesn't mean she should be trying to screw it up for Elsa too.

She weakly gestures for Elsa to take point, as she doesn't know her way through the house. She stands stiffly and brushes past Anna without a word. Anna silently curses herself out the entire way to the dining room, firmly believing that this will be the most awkward dinner ever.

The dining room is just as fancy as the rest of the house, and Flynn has already set the plates down. Anna hurriedly grabs at the pile of silverware on the table and places all the forks, spoons, and knives down in their proper places.

In the butler's pantry, Rapunzel is whispering excitedly to Elsa, who responds with a slight grimace. When Rapunzel sees Anna looking their way, she smiles innocently at her and pushes a tray of mashed potatoes into Elsa's hands.

The meal is ready to be eaten a few minutes later when Brendan brings a truly glorious looking turkey out of the kitchen. There's some appreciative applause from the table, Rapunzel bobbing up and down in her seat in anticipation of a great meal.

Sarah delicately taps a spoon against her wine glass to gain everyone's attention. "Would our guests like to serve themselves first?"

Flynn nods towards Anna. "Ladies first." Aware of everyone's eyes on her, Anna stands and begins to fill her plate, even though she has next to no appetite. Turkey, potatoes, cranberry sauce, and a bread roll make their way onto her plate.

The rest of the group have their food in front of them and Rapunzel raises her glass. "To family and friends!" she says.

Everyone else raises their glasses and echo her words before digging in. Throughout the meal, Rapunzel's parents are strangely quiet, but Anna soon realizes that they're just people of few words. Flynn fills up the space with easy conversation, which she and Rapunzel keep pace with. Anna restrains herself from looking at Elsa even though she can feel her eyes on her every so often.

Even though the food is delicious, Anna can't help but poke at it. She's a mess of nerves knowing that she and Elsa will eventually have to talk about the things Anna said earlier. It was a mistake to come here, and an even bigger one to bring up her father. It was stupid and selfish and who knows what Elsa is thinking now.

It's almost a relief when her pager goes off, cleanly cutting through her thoughts.

The table falls quiet as Anna fumbles with the device and silences it. She pushes her chair back and it scrapes loudly against the floor. "I-I'm sorry," she says hesitantly. "I'm going to have to leave early, I'm on call tonight."

Sarah nods in understanding. "Would you like to take any leftovers home?"

Anna puts a hand to her stomach. "I'll be fine." Addressing both Sarah and Brendan, she says, "I really appreciate you having me over tonight."

Brendan waves at her good-naturedly. "It was a pleasure. Come by any time."

Anna smiles at them and waves goodbye to Flynn and Rapunzel. Beside her, Elsa stands up. "I'll see you to the door," she says tightly.

The two walk towards the entrance, Anna snagging her coat out of the closet. "I'm sorry about cutting out—"

"Don't leave," Elsa says. There's none of the anger Anna expected in her, just a firm desire for her to stay.

But this is the first case she's had since the akaname. If she stays, she could be suspended again or worse. "It's my job," she says weakly. "I have to leave."

Elsa expels a long breath. "Fine. Whatever. I'll see you on Sunday then, alright?"

"Of course," Anna answers, surprised and a little disappointed Elsa already gave up on convincing her otherwise.

Elsa shuts the door after she leaves, giving Anna the privacy she needs to read her pager.

_[Kamaitachi](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamaitachi), 3ft, _ _28.79°, 82.01°_

Excellent. While kamaitachi were dangerous looking, what with their ability to create whirlwinds and their sickle-like paws, they weren't considered very dangerous to hunters. Once just one of their paws is cut off, the creature dies. Rather anticlimactic, but Anna's sure not complaining.

She fires up her car and heads out, not exactly _regretting_ that she has to leave, but certainly wishing she could have stayed longer. Though she is glad that she'll have the rest of the break to heal in peace, without Elsa having to see any potential injuries.

* * *

The forest is eerily quiet, or perhaps it's just been so long since she's been here. Learning from her last case, she's brought a backpack full of weapons and a few emergency healing supplies with her, since her car is about a mile away from the creature's location.

Her weapon of choice tonight is a mean looking, early model Bowie knife. It doesn't differ too much from a butcher's knife, and one clean cut with it should end the fight with the kamaitachi. She's also wearing armguards that come up to her elbows in case the creature tries to use its paws on her.

A shrill, pained cry pierces the night. It's an animal, possibly one being eaten by the kamaitachi. Anna follows the noise, noting that it's taking her in the right direction.

After a few minutes she hears the noise again, this time sounding like it's within thirty feet of her. She steps behind a tree and peers out, scanning the area ahead of her.

She spots the kamaitachi in the middle of it disemboweling its meal. Perfect timing. While it's distracted, Anna inches closer and closer, ducking behind trees whenever it lifts its head. When she's nearly right behind it, she leaps on top of its back.

The creature chokes in surprise, the breath being forced out of it as Anna squeezes its belly. It rears back on its hind legs, trying to buck her off. Anna holds on grimly, one of her hands inching towards a bladed paw.

The paw comes up to meet her, and the blade just misses her eye. On the paw's descent, Anna grabs it and _twists_ , hearing bones splinter. The kamaitachi shrieks out but it's no use; Anna has already reached into the sheath around her thigh. Simultaneously slamming the injured paw into the ground and taking the Bowie out with her free hand, she cuts the paw off in one smooth motion. The kamaitachi cries out again and falls silent as blood oozes out of its new and fatal injury.

It should be over, one of the easiest fights Anna's ever had. She's almost put out that she had to leave Elsa and the others just to take care of this pest.

But then it shifts.

The kamaitachi is no longer. A [roc ](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roc_%28mythology%29) is now beneath her, one of its giant talons slicing towards her. Anna puts her arm up just in time, but the talon slices through her arm guard completely, edging into her skin. She stumbles backwards, landing on her backpack.

The enormous bird of prey flaps its wings, sending a gust of snow towards Anna. When the powder clears, she sees the roc is perched on a tree across from her on its only foot, staring at her with golden eyes.

"Shifter," Anna spits out. Her heart feels like it's about to beat out of her body. She's screwed, she's _screwed_. Shifters were above her paygrade and experience level. They're too intelligent, too unpredictable for Level Two hunters like her to deal with.

The beast swoops down to stand on its hind legs, feathers melting away to reveal the tanned, naked skin of a woman. "Human," the beast answers back with a savage smile.

The smile is the last thing to disappear when it changes its form again.

The [yowie ](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yowie) towers in front of her, resembling a gorilla on steroids. A hairy fist comes out of nowhere and slams into her side. Anna feels two of her ribs crack and for a few moments she can't remember how to breathe.

Another shift, this time to a common wolf. It pounces on her, one of its three paws digging into her injured side. Its jaw closes around her arm guard, shaking at it savagely until it comes loose and then, as Anna struggles to get the wolf off, it sinks its teeth into her skin.

As if satisfied when it hears Anna cry out, the wolf releases her arm and backs up until it's no longer on her.

_It's playing with me_ , Anna thinks through a haze of pain. She has to…has to remember its weakness. Taking as much time as possible to get up, she dredges up memories of shifters.

They only possess the physical shell of other creatures—they have none of the supernatural abilities of the species it copies. Injuries transfer regardless of form, which is why the wolf in front of her only has three paws. And the only way to truly kill it is by making it bleed out until there's nothing left.

The wolf morphs back into a woman. "Tired already?" it asks mockingly.

"You're about to lose your other hand, bitch," Anna growls back. She can't stand straight; the stance puts too much stress on her broken ribs. But she still has her knife and she intends to cut into every vulnerable spot she can reach.

The ugly smirk is wiped off the shifter's face and it changes again. Fur melts to feathers melts to scales. Talons to claws to nails. Anna can't keep up with the forms and they begin to blur together.

Eventually she gets a bloody, possibly broken, nose that streams down the front of her face and shirt, and numerous slashes ranging from shallow to dangerously deep. Her face feels swollen and soon she can't see out of her left eye. The small bones in one of her wrists get ground together when the shifter becomes a boar and stomps on it. Her tongue gets in the way of her teeth as she gets slammed to the ground, causing her to bite a piece of it off and filling her mouth with blood.

_I can't do this._

The thought is singular and suffocating in its certainty.

It's shifting too fast for Anna to recognize where its weak points are in each form. The only injuries she's managed to give it are minimal at best, while she's getting closer to unconsciousness with each new shift.

There's only one thing she can do now, and it's not so much a strategy as a last resort. If…if she can suffer just a little longer, the shifter might become too tired to keep shifting. Once it's trapped in a form, Anna can kill it.

The thought is enough to put a red smile on her face.

The shifter tilts its head at her in curiosity a moment before turning into a woman once again. "I do so love the human form," it says as it stalks over to her. It punches her in the jaw, causing her head to jerk violently to the side. The shifter uses its stump to hold Anna's head against a tree as its fingers run along her throat. "It's so easy to hurt you like this."

"Funny," Anna pants, "that's exactly what I was thinking." Her knife flashes in the moonlight as she slices into the shifter's already-injured arm. The blade travels along an artery for a good six inches, splitting it open and spraying blood over both of them.

The shifter jerks back with an ear-piercing scream, unable to stem the flow of bleeding. Each pump of its heart causes more blood to arc out of the wound and the shifter falls to its knees. "I…" Anna says as she slowly begins limping over to it, "I thought you'd last longer. You can't shift any more, can you?"

It bares its teeth at her, recoiling. "Help!" it cries out. "Somebody help me, _please_!" The shifter continues to back away from her, leaving a crimson trail for Anna to follow. " _Help_!"

Anna can't stand for much longer and she leans heavily against a tree, staring down at the pitiful creature in front of her. A sense of discomfit passes through her since it looks like a normal, college-aged woman who's slowly bleeding to death. The moment passes and she takes another step forward, intent on slicing the shifter's other wrist wide open.

"Get away from her!" a new voice cuts through the air.

Icy spray slams against her, feeling like it's going straight though her clothing and skin. She gasps at the sensation of it wrapping around her heart when it abruptly fades to nothing. Before she can even absorb what just happened, a freaking _icicle_ pins her to the tree by the hood of her jacket.

For a moment, she thinks another shifter is in front of her. Because there is no way Elsa is here right now.

Anna opens her mouth to speak, but the only thing that comes out is a pathetic gurgling as blood gets caught in her throat. She swallows the mass, ignoring how it makes her stomach churn. If she thought she was screwed before, she _definitely_ is now.

"How…are you here…right now?" Anna struggles to say. She's starting to fade, and her grasp on reality is…less than ideal.

"I followed you," Elsa says shortly. Her hands are still raised and pointed at her, ready to strike again.

A laugh threatens to rip through Anna at the sheer unfairness of this situation, but she keeps it inside despite the pain it causes her ribs. Laughing right now could very well get her killed.

"Kris…" Anna wheezes, trying to find a more comfortable position (like _away_ from the icicle), "owes me twenty bucks." Elsa stares at her like Anna's lost her mind, and so she kindly elaborates, "We had a bet over whether you were fae or not. Clearly I was…very right."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Elsa says, hands not lowering in the slightest. "If this is some kind of distraction—"

"This isn't a distraction," Anna says around the blood still welling in her mouth. "This is my _job_."

Horrible, horrible realization dawns across Elsa's face. "Oh my god," she says numbly, "All those injuries you've been getting—they're all from your victims fighting back!"

"Well, kinda," Anna hedges, "I mean, you're not wrong."

Apparently that wasn't the right thing to be honest about. A sort of blue tingling erupts from Elsa's fingertips and another icicle forms. "I swear," Anna says against gritted teeth, "I swear to god that this isn't what it looks like." She tries to give Elsa a comforting smile, but blood oozes from between her teeth, gathering on her chin alongside the blood from her nose.

Elsa looks sharply towards the ground, away from the macabre sight. Her eyes land on what looks to be a dying woman, one who's still mumbling for help.

"You have to see what this looks like to me," Elsa whispers.

"I know _exactly_ what this looks like," Anna answers best she can. "But this…this thing is a shifter, not a human. If you can believe that you aren't human, believe _that_ ," her head lolls towards the figure on the ground, "isn't human either."

The fucking thing needs to _die_ already. The wound she inflicted was fatal. At this point, the creature is probably living just to spite her. "We have to wait," Anna says as calmly as possible. "When it dies, it'll revert back to its normal form. But until then, it'll look human."

"Why should I trust you?" Elsa hisses. "There's a beaten, bloody person here and you're saying I should wait around until she _dies_?"

"Just trust me when I say I'm not a god damn _murderer_ , Elsa!" Anna says loudly, startling the other woman. "I'm a hunter. Kristoff and I…we hunt down supernatural creatures. Either we relocate them, o-or…we kill them."

That doesn't comfort Elsa at all. "Does that mean you're going to kill me as well?" she asks, her icicle becoming longer and sharper.

"What, no!" Anna shakes her head emphatically despite the movement making her brain feel like scrambled eggs. "I work for an organization called the Guild. Unless you've maimed or killed someone, I wouldn't have any reason to kill you." _Plus, only Level One hunters are supposed to hunt down human-like creatures_ , she adds silently. That part probably wouldn't help Elsa relax.

Elsa nods uncertainly but her gaze is quickly drawn to the shifter again when it moans. "She's missing a hand. Why is she missing a hand?" Elsa says in horror, staring at the pitiful creature at her feet.

"It uh, came off," Anna answers, trying valiantly not to giggle at the answer. Shit, she needs medicine soon, but it's in her bag and there's no way Elsa would hand that over.

"If it makes you feel better," she adds in what she hopes is a placating tone, pointing out the huge blood spatters on her clothes and skin with her less injured hand, "I think most of this is mine."

Elsa lets out a near hysterical whimper. "I'm calling the police. You need _help_ , Anna." She pulls out her phone but her hand is shaking so much that she drops it.

"Wait! It's dying. It's fucking dying!" Anna crows, "Look at it!"

The shifter twitches in the thick puddle of its blood, letting out one last exhale. The bones of its shapely legs and toned arms twist against one another, shrinking away to nothing. The face is the last to go, collapsing in on itself.

All that's left of the shifter is a black, gaseous shadow floating in the space above where it died.

"Oh god," Elsa murmurs. "Oh my god." She runs over to Anna, fingers slipping against the icicle embedded in Anna's jacket. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, Anna." She pulls at the icicle until it comes out, which causes Anna to instantly sink to the ground now that nothing's holding her up.

"Hey," she says blearily, "it's…no big deal."

Before she knows it, Elsa is pulling her in for a tight hug, still uttering apologies under her breath.

Anna's unable to stop the startled yelp that comes out of her. "A-as much as I…don't mind being hugged right now, I'm kind of…ahh!…b-broken in a few places."

"Of course!" Elsa says, releasing her immediately. "I can do this…this _thing_ with my hands. I can heal you, at least a little bit—"

"No," Anna says weakly. "It'll drain you too much if you do that now, and you need to get _out_ of here soon. Just get me my bag, please."

Elsa fetches it and dumps the contents out on the ground. Anna sifts through the supplies until she finds a numbing agent. It's in the form of an extremely potent patch, another one of Jack's inventions. She puts it on the inside of her elbow and grabs her phone.

"Creature's gone," she says once Cleanup answers, already feeling a little less pain, "but it wasn't a kamaitachi, it was a shifter… _yeah_ , I know. Which is why I'd appreciate a medic being brought along. Right. See you then."

Throughout all of this, Elsa is staring at her with a dazed expression. Anna snaps her fingers in front of her. "Hey, you have to get going."

Elsa startles back into reality. "Why?"

"Cleanup is coming," she says urgently, "I need to explain about a billion things to you before you decide if you want to become part of the Guild. Just meet me at the apartment, alright? I'll be back in a couple hours at most."

"But—"

"Hey," Anna says, grasping Elsa's hand, "I know this is a lot to take in right now and nothing makes any sense, but I promise I'll have no more secrets from you, not anymore. Go to the apartment and we'll talk then."

Elsa nods shakily. Unexpectedly, a taut smile pulls at her lips. "No more secrets?" she repeats in a small voice, like she doesn't quite believe the words.

"Not a single one," Anna replies with a smile of her own. "And trust me, I'm about to blow your mind."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The lovely fanart at the end of the chapter is from tumblr user [dillautris](http://dillautris.tumblr.com/post/128424282920/because-last-chapter-of-kill-of-the-night-left-me)
> 
> You might have noticed that 'Shifter' didn't have a link to follow. That's because I kind of made the creature up. Obviously I don't take any responsibility for the idea of a shapeshifter, but all the attributes mentioned in the chapter are 'rules' I made up for it.


	8. Show and Tell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge shoutout to my new, amazing, super awesome beta...fellow user [The Wandering Quill](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/1472024/The-Wandering-Quill). Thank you for all your editing help!

It takes a surprisingly long time for Cleanup to reach Anna. She thinks it's because someone over at Recon has _a lot_ of explaining to do about why they sent a Level Two hunter after a Level One creature. It's definitely grounds for dismissal, and for _very_ good reason. Level Two hunters don't have the training—or the mental fortitude, in some cases—to hunt down creatures with human-level intellect.

Anna's just happy she made it out of the fight _alive_ and in one piece.

Still sitting against the tree for support, her eyes drift towards the remnants of the shifter. Its shadow hangs above the blood-drenched snow, moving slightly whenever it's caught in a gust of wind.

Anna's adrenaline is finally starting to fade away, making her realize how utterly exhausted she is. She faintly hopes she won't fall asleep before answering all the questions Elsa must have.

_Elsa…_

If there's one bright spot in this crappy situation, it's that her friend finally knows about her job. The thought elicits a sigh and a small, pained smile. It feels like a weight has been lifted off her shoulders; she'll no longer have to lie to Elsa or have to see her worried —well, _as_ worried—again. Sure, it wasn't exactly _ideal_ that Elsa kinda thought she was a serial killer, but it was an understandable response to a stressful situation.

As she ponders the strangeness of being mistaken for a murderer, an unfamiliar man steps into her range of vision. He crouches down in front of her, indifferent to the gore around him, and takes a penlight out of his jacket's breast pocket. "What's your name?" he asks brusquely as he flashes the light in her eyes.

"A-Anna," she whispers, dismayed that she sounds like she's on the verge of mumbling. "Theron." She clears her throat, hoping it will help her voice come out stronger.

"Good. What day is it?"

"Thanksgiving. Wait, no. I think it's Black Friday by now, right?" Anna doesn't know what time it is, but it's most definitely past midnight.

The man nods. "I'm Dr. Westin. It doesn't seem like you have a concussion. Tell me about the other injuries you have."

Because after fighting a shifter, it's a given she has more than just a head wound. She lists off different body parts, and he checks over them all.

Behind him, two Cleanup members are taking care of the shifter remains, sealing it away in some sort of metal box, while others work on cleansing the surrounding area of blood.

"…the wrist and ribs are the only injuries that will take a few days to heal," Westin is telling her as he finishes with the field dressings. He pointedly places a few vials and pill bottles into her backpack. "Everything is labeled, so take only as directed."

"Thank you," Anna says quietly. She knows the medicine will be invaluable these next few weeks, especially for the broken bones.

The man nods and is about to say something more when Anna's hunting supervisor, Jack O'Connor, stalks over. It's the first time she's seen the man without a desk between them, and he's taller than she had previously thought. He's skipped a button on his long-sleeved henley, and his dark hair, instead of being in it's usual comb-over, flops over half of his face.

He squats down to her level, grimacing at the stained snow between them. "You holding up, kid?" he asks softly. His gray eyes flick towards the area the Cleanup crew are taking care of. "Looks like it was one helluva fight."

The paternal tone in his voice makes Anna raise her head a bit higher. "It was one-sided for the most part, sir," she replies honestly. She definitely didn't expect to see him here, though she supposes this screw-up was big enough for him to check out in person.

"But you still came through alright." The proud twinkle in his eyes catches her off guard; just a few weeks ago he was berating her. He shifts his weight from one foot to the other and clears his throat. "I need you to describe each of the shifts you saw tonight. For the field report."

"Ahh…okay." Anna closes her eyes, hoping she can remember everything. "There was the kamaitachi first, of course. Then a roc, a yowie..." She goes on down the list before stuttering on the word 'human'.

O'Connor exchanges a look with Dr. Westin, who's still hovering nearby. "Thank you. The next item to discuss is your therapy session."

"Therapy?" she echoes, narrowing the eye that isn't swollen shut. The word fans an ember of righteous indignation in her. "Just because I have a history of bloodless bodies doesn't mean I need _therapy_ —"

"You misunderstand," Dr. Westin cuts her off smoothly. After glancing at her supervisor for approval, he continues, "The first time a person kills a Level One creature, it's mandatory that they attend at least one therapy session. At times the creature is too close to being human and it can cause some… _distress_ …in the hunters."

Anna's stomach twitches as she remembers cutting through a very human artery, and watching as very human blood ran out of it. She swallows hard, hoping her Thanksgiving dinner will stay down. "Yeah…I can see that being a problem," she answers meekly. Perhaps a session wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

They settle on the date and time, and the doctor stretches out a hand to help her up. She rises slowly, wincing at the tugging sensation it causes in her ribs. A colder, deeper pain follows after it, emanating from the center of her chest.

"Everything alright?" O'Connor asks in concern.

Anna slowly drops her hand, not realizing it was clutching at her shirt. The sensation slips away so fast she thinks she might have been imagining it. "Yeah…" she says, sounding more uncertain than she'd like. "Yeah, I'm fine."

O'Connor nods, though he doesn't look completely convinced. "I'll walk you back to your car," he says after a moment.

The offer surprises her, but she nods and starts walking all the same. It's not long before he speaks again. "I'm going to recommend you take another week off."

Anna nearly misses a step. "What, no!" she protests, "I just started again! And it's Thanksgiving break. I already volunteered to work overtime—"

"It'll be with pay," he says, tone making it clear that she shouldn't argue about this. "You need time to heal and I don't want you back in the field until you're at one hundred percent."

Anna frowns even though she knows this is for her own good. She remembers exactly what happened the last time she was a little _too_ eager to jump back into work. At least now she knows she's back in O'Connor's good graces after the akaname disaster.

When her car comes into view, she can't help but sigh in relief. This night has been far too long and it's still not over yet.

O'Connor stands awkwardly to the side as she puts her gear in the passenger seat. "Theron," he says just as she's about to slip behind the wheel.

She straightens back up. "Yes, sir?

He shifts his eyes so he's not looking directly at her. "Lydia would've been proud of how you handled yourself tonight," he says gruffly, the faintest hint of pink visible on the tips of his ears.

"Oh..." Anna feels a bit blindsided at hearing her mom's name so suddenly. "I'm glad you think so," she says politely, unsure of how to respond to that.

O'Connor gives her a stiff nod. "Have a good night and be sure to heal up." With that, he turns on his heel and strides back towards the nearly-finished Cleanup crew.

As Anna gets into her car, she can't stop a small, sad smile from crossing her lips. O'Connor's comment was spot on, and it serves as a reminder that she and her father weren't the only people to lose her mom.

...But the past is in the past, right? She has a friend to get back to, and that takes over reminiscing on things beyond her control.

* * *

When she gets back home, she finds Elsa pacing up and down the entryway, gnawing nervously at a fingernail. She stills when she sees Anna, looking desperately like she wants to give her another hug before remembering how injured Anna might still be. "Are you alright? What took so long?"

"Paperwork," is Anna's tired reply.

Elsa is quick to furrow her brow. "Really, you have… _paperwork_?" she asks, not quite skeptical but definitely surprised. "That's so—"

"Normal?" Anna guesses, "Mundane? Boring? I agree. I also had to get questioned about the case since what you saw wasn't…" she guiltily averts her gaze, imagining how utterly _terrifying_ the scene must have looked from Elsa's point of view. "It's not what I do. Not at all. I'm sorry you had to find out that way."

"Oh, Anna," Elsa murmurs, coming closer. She puts two fingers under Anna's chin and tilts her head up so their eyes meet again. Anna's heart speeds up at the tender, unexpected action. "You're so…" Elsa's voice trails off and she drops her hand, gingerly rubbing her thumb over her fingers.

"...dirty," she finishes, nose wrinkling at the filth on her fingertips.

But Anna's suddenly glad for the dirt and blood on her face—hopefully it means Elsa can't see her cheeks reddening. "Occupational hazard," she says in an equally quiet voice, surprised at how welcome Elsa's touch feels.

They both pause and just look at each other. Even though Anna's appearance is utterly disgusting, there's nothing but affection in Elsa's gaze. Anna doesn't bother trying to smother the dopey grin crossing her face, and Elsa is quick to respond with a soft smile of her own.

Everything has changed between them now. There's still so much ground to cover, so many things Elsa needs to know. But Anna wasn't kidding when she said there would be no more secrets between them. She feels so _relieved_ now that she can be truthful to the other woman, because god knows Elsa deserves honesty after everything she's put up with. From the smile Elsa is giving her, she knows they're finally on the same page.

Anna clears her throat, just now realizing they've been doing nothing but smiling at each other for the last thirty seconds or so. "I should probably take a shower."

Elsa nods in agreement, smile effortlessly changing into a smirk. "Just try not to use all of my bodywash this time."

"I'll see what I can do," Anna answers dryly. She shuffles into her room to drop off her supplies, grabbing her pajamas and some of her new medicine before heading back out. Nodding to Elsa when she passes her in the hall, she prepares to take the quickest and most thorough shower in history.

That idea kind of falls through when she ends up nodding off under the shower's warm, comforting spray, only waking up when she hears Elsa knocking on the bathroom door. "Are you okay? The water's been running for forty minutes."

"Y-yeah!" Anna answers quickly even as she silently curses at herself. She shuts off the faucet and hops out, almost slipping in her haste to get dried off and into her clean clothes. When she yanks open the door, she's more out of breath than she'd like to admit.

Elsa, who had been standing right in front of the door, has to take a step backwards so they don't collide. "Sorry if you weren't done, I was just—"

"No, no," Anna breathlessly cuts her off. "I …sort of fell asleep in the shower. Thanks for knocking."

"Oh." Elsa runs a critical eye up and down Anna's form, eyes narrowing in consideration. "We could…postpone our talk. If you want to sleep." Elsa sounds slightly pained, as if the suggestion has caused a little part of her to die. Anna gets the feeling she's been suppressing her desire to launch a barrage of questions at Anna since her return.

Anna nods reluctantly, knowing there's a high chance of her falling asleep in the middle of Elsa's interrogation. "I'll be of more use to you after I get some rest," she sheepishly admits. She notices Elsa's face fall a little even though she tries to mask it with an understanding nod. A sudden thought hits Anna, coaxing a bright smile to her face. "But there _is_ something you can do in the meantime."

She takes ahold of Elsa's hand and guides her towards her bedroom. Anna knows this is a really stupid time to feel self-conscious about the state of her room, but she picks up a few stray socks anyways, not wanting Elsa to think she's too much of a slob. Elsa takes in the space with open interest, eyes sliding from Anna's rumpled, green comforter to the impressive array of books lining her shelves and spilling across her desk.

"Let's see what we have..." Anna muses to herself as she heads over to the books. Her fingers brush against their worn bindings, lingering over a few titles before she comes to a decision. She grabs two thick, leather-bound books and sets them on the bed for Elsa to inspect. "These are bestiaries. They have pictures and descriptions of different types of creatures, including many of the ones I hunt. I've written notes in a few entries that you might find interesting."

Or amusing, depending on the creature—the sole note she has for lavellans is ' _slippery little bastards_ '.

Beside her, Elsa releases a shaky breath. "Okay. Alright, thanks," she says distractedly. It looks like she's ready to devour the books in one bite and only Anna's presence is preventing her from doing so.

"There's one more thing you should know," Anna solemnly says as she hands the books to Elsa. "Something extremely important."

Now _that_ gets Elsa's attention. She refocuses on Anna, who schools her expression to look deathly serious. "We live in a world where there is a never ending war between humans and others…between good and evil itself. You'll have to pick your side soon, Elsa. I hope it's the right one."

Elsa's mouth drops open in shock and she nearly loses her grip on the books. She tries and fails to formulate words and resorts to just _staring_ at Anna in disbelief.

Anna can't take it anymore and bursts out laughing at the sight, ignoring the pain in her ribs because that was _worth it_ , dammit. "I'm totally kidding. We'll talk in a few hours, alright?"

Elsa recovers surprisingly fast, her mouth turning into a scowl that doesn't hold any actual anger. "You're going to have a lot of fun with this whole thing, aren't you?"

Still chortling, Anna crawls into her bed and flops against her pillows. "Hell yeah, I am."

* * *

When she wakes up, the first thing she sees is Elsa. She's sitting on the floor, her back against the wall. One book is propped open against her thighs and the other is off to the side. Her eyes squint in concentration as her lips silently form the words on the pages.

"Bored yet?" Anna asks, voice slightly husky from sleep.

The question breaks Elsa's concentration, and she startles slightly. "I don't think I could ever get bored of this," she responds easily, lips curving upwards. "Though I do have a question."

"Hmm, only one? This whole thing was easier than I thought it would be," Anna drawls. She shifts to her side, one hand propping her head up so she can get a better look at Elsa.

Ignoring the jab, Elsa continues, "I know you said I could read these, but there's a lot of words I'm not familiar with. What on earth does ' _malum_ ' mean?"

"Apple," Anna says absentmindedly. She's become a bit distracted by how fucking _happy_ Elsa looks. People always talk about how women seem to glow during pregnancy—well, those women have nothing on Elsa. There's a healthy, excited flush to her cheeks and she's more relaxed than Anna's seen her in weeks. She's practically radiating contentment, like she's meant to be in Anna's room with her, reading through books of strange and exotic creatures.

But the image is broken when Elsa's nose wrinkles in confusion. Her eyes go back down to the book and she reads aloud, "'Throughout history, [wargs ](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warg)are best known for their large-scale acts of violence, lust for human blood…and apples.' Are you sure that's right?"

"Context means everything, doesn't it?" Anna asks rhetorically, knowing Elsa can see the embarrassed flush that's taking over her face. "In this case, it means 'evil-doing'. Though I wouldn't be surprised if wargs liked apples every now and then." _Excellent save_ , she sarcastically congratulates herself.

She sits up fully and stretches her arms, careful not to agitate her ribs. "What do you say we go into the living room for the rest of this talk? Unless that really was the only question you had." It seems…strange, somehow, for Elsa to be in here. Because she really _does_ seem completely at ease with being in her room. Plus, the only place for them to sit and talk comfortably would be on Anna's bed, which definitely isn't the place to have a lengthy discussion.

"Alright," Elsa nods in agreement, joints creaking as she rises to her feet. Anna wonders if this is the first time Elsa's gotten up since she handed over the books.

Anna rolls out of bed as gracefully as her injuries allow her to and leads the way out of her room. She makes a beeline for the kitchen, where her energy bars await her.

Elsa watches as she bustles around the kitchen and a small laugh escapes her when Anna runs a lazy hand through her hair. When Anna turns around, she sees Elsa squinting thoughtfully at her. "With your hair like that, you look a bit like a [futakuchi](http://yokai.com/futakuchionna/)." Anna's eyebrows raise in surprise at the unexpected reference. Futakuchi were human-like in appearance and known for having an extra mouth buried underneath a layer of thick, disheveled hair. With a small smirk, Elsa adds, "That could also explain why you eat so much."

"Maybe I should take those books back. You're clearly using your newfound knowledge for evil," Anna grouses, though she attempts to flatten her cowlick nonetheless. In response to Elsa's other jab, she simply crams an entire energy bar into her mouth before snagging another one and heading over to the couch.

She sits cross-legged on it, hands resting comfortably in her lap. Elsa quickly joins her, sitting so she's facing Anna head-on.

"You know," Anna starts around a mouthful of food, "You're taking this whole thing surprisingly well so far. Are you sure you're not in some kind of deep denial?"

If Anna's being truthful, she thought Elsa would have had some sort of freak out by now. She certainly wouldn't blame her if she did—having to accept that there's a whole world beyond what she previously believed is certainly a lot to take in.

A ghost of a smile passes Elsa's face when she says, "This is real, isn't it? It's not just some crazy dream I'm having?" Her questions are asked in a light tone, but Anna can tell she's not joking.

Anna straightens up and puts a reassuring hand on Elsa's knee. "I promise that all of this is real—it's not a dream, not some elaborate ploy to gain your trust. We can start whenever you're ready to."

Elsa nods shyly. "I…don't even know where to begin."

"Me neither," Anna admits with a small smile, taking her hand off the other woman. "I was born into this sort of…double life, I guess. It took _years_ to learn everything I know, and I'm still nowhere near being an expert on anything."

They stay silent, Elsa considering Anna's words carefully. "What if we start with you, then? Would…would that be alright?" she asks hesitantly.

"That works," Anna says with more confidence than she feels. "Ask away!" She shifts so her knees are curled up to her chest and loops her arms around them. The pose doesn't exactly scream 'at ease', but she doesn't know how personal Elsa's questions might get.

"You said you were a hunter, but that what I saw last night..." she grimaces at the memory, "wasn't normal for you. Why was that?"

Anna exhales, choosing her next words carefully. "My job involves Level Two creatures. 'Level Two' refers to any creature whose intellect is below that of a human. They're...animals, basically. The Guild sends me a page if the creature has endangered human lives or are about to. Depending on the type, I'm either tasked to kill or move it away from Arendelle.

"Last night was a Level One; meaning it's as smart as a human, if not smarter. You're probably familiar with these creatures because they're all the rage in the media," Anna continues, "I was fighting a shape shifter last night. Someone at the Guild mistook it for a lesser creature and sent me after it. I'm not trained to hunt Level Ones. You need to pass a _whole_ array of psych and aptitude tests because the work is so dangerous."

When explaining this to Anna, her father had said, _"_ _Level Two_ _hunters aren't all that different from regular hunters. But what your mother and I do is more along the lines of detectives._ _Level One_ _s have rights and protections, same as we do. We have to track them down so they can be sentenced for their crimes, or killed on sight if it comes to that. Humans who harm nonhumans also fall under our jurisdiction."_

She repeats those same words to Elsa, voice fading near the end when she sees anger shining in her eyes. Elsa's lips thin and form a vicious frown, and her hands tighten into fists. Anna swallows hard—she didn't think the explanation would evoke _this_ kind of reaction.

" _How dare they_ ," Elsa growls, and Anna swears the room feels a little cooler. This conversation is already going off the rails and she's hardly said anything yet. Anna raises her hands in a placating manner, ready to defend her job.

But then Elsa goes on, "How _dare_ they send you after that thing. You could have gotten killed!"

Anna blinks. "Umm..."

"Who's in charge of sending you those pages?" Elsa demands, eyes narrowing in anger. "How hard is it for them to just do their job? Those _fucking_ idiots."

It's the first time Anna's ever heard Elsa use that expletive. She's rendered speechless for a moment, opening and closing her mouth like a surprised guppy. "Recon can be a difficult job," she says eventually, though she's not sure why she's trying to defend the faceless Guild member responsible for tonight's events, "there's lots of variables to account for—"

"And are they not trained to look for them? I've seen you after these cases of yours, Anna. If that's the 'easier' job of the two, they have no excuse for that kind of _mistake_." Elsa spits the word out with such venom that it has Anna leaning away slightly.

She's honestly more than a little touched by this reaction, and it makes her realize she's never truly been on Elsa's bad side before. This information has Elsa acting like a mama bear protecting her cub from the world. It would be completely inappropriate to smile right now, right?

"I really am okay, Els," she says instead, hoping the affection she put in the shortened name is coming through loud and clear. "That kind of thing _never_ happens, I promise. And hey, I got the rest of the week off...with pay!" she adds cheerfully. At the time, O'Connor's recommendation didn't seem like such a great thing, but now that she sees Elsa relax slightly, she's glad she accepted the time off.

"Good," Elsa grumbles in approval. "That's the least they should do for you." She sighs and adjusts her position slightly. "I'm sorry for that outburst. And I'm not mad at _you_ for once—"

"A refreshing change of pace—" Anna interjects.

"—just the situation," Elsa continues, pointedly ignoring her snarky remark. "I…worry about you." She looks down after the admission, teeth fretting her bottom lip.

The sight warms something in Anna's chest, and her grin changes into something gentler. "I like knowing you're watching out for me," she says quietly. Elsa's eyes flick back up, suddenly looking impossibly blue. "That of anyone I could come home to...it's you. I like that. A lot."

Despite their rocky start as roommates, Elsa's proven to be one of the best people Anna's ever known. She's determined, sweeter than she'd ever admit, and has, as it turns out, a protective streak a mile wide where Anna's concerned.

Her heart gives an oddly pleasant, little jump at the thought.

Elsa stiffens under the weight of the words, shoulders hunching up to her ears as she bites harder into her bottom lip. Her cheeks take on a familiar pink tint, yet her eyes refuse to stray from Anna's. The look is so unexpectedly adorable that it has Anna blushing without knowing exactly why.

Hoping to spare both of them from further embarrassment, Anna breaks eye contact first with a small cough. "We should continue," she says hastily, staring fixedly at Elsa's shoulder. "There's _a lot_ more to get through. How about we talk about the Guild? "

"That sounds like a good idea," Elsa says, blush fading and replaced by the anticipation Anna saw earlier.

"Great!" Anna says, attempting to inject some enthusiasm into what's sure to be a long speech. "Alright, so the Guild is a _huuuuge_ organization, mostly for nonhumans. It's split into dozens of branches, from international, to national, all the way down to specific cities. Joining it is optional, but most everyone does."

She points emphatically to herself. "Humans can other join either by being grandfathered in—like I was— or if they possess a skill needed by the Guild. Since humans outnumber intelligent nonhumans, there's a whole lot of teamwork involved. The Guild has basically been around since the beginning of time, helping along interactions between all the various species…"

* * *

After nearly two hours of talking, Anna has long since sunk bonelessly into the couch. Elsa, on the other hand, remains sitting upright, back straight and one leg crossed over the other. If anything, she's only grown _more_ attentive with each passing sentence Anna has uttered.

 _It's like she thinks this is for class credit_ , Anna thinks in weary amusement. Wanting to test that theory out, she asks, "Would you like to take any notes on what I'm saying?"

Elsa perks up at that. "Can I do that?" she asks eagerly, lips twitching upwards as she leans forward a little. "Are you sure that'd be alright?"

Anna laughs, though it's cut short by the pain unfurling in her ribs. She swears she feels one of them shift into an anatomically incorrect position. "Oh, _oww_ ," she gasps, a curse almost following on her tongue. For a while there, she'd been able to forget that she was still injured.

"Are you alright?" Elsa immediately asks in a far more concerned tone, scooting over so she and Anna are nearly touching. "Did something happen?"

"Nope, all good here," Anna says sheepishly, not expecting Elsa to suddenly be so _close_. "Just me being an idiot, nothing out of the ordinary." _This is what karma feels like, isn't it?_

Elsa gives her a look of thinly-veiled suspicion but doesn't push the matter. The pain radiating from her ribs becomes tolerable after a few careful breaths. "Anyways…" Anna finally says, nearly sighing in relief, "where were we?"

* * *

"Vampires?"

"Yep, though they're not at all sparkly or particularly attractive."

"Werewolves?"

"Yes."

"Mummies?"

"Well they're basically reanimated corpses…so yeah, I guess."

"…Unicorns?"

"Of course not. That would be ridiculous."

* * *

"Wait, _Kristoff_?"

"Well, sort of. It's an ability, not a different species. It makes him kind of superhuman in a way. Though if you ever tell him I said that, his ego will swell to...well, the size of a normal person's."

"So he can talk to animals? How does that work exactly?"

"I don't know the biological nitty-gritty behind it, but since he only has the gene from one parent, his powers are more limited than a full-fledged esper. He can communicate with Sven telepathically and can see through his eyes if he wants to, but that's the only connection he can hold. His mom can communicate with whatever animal she wants, which definitely helps when hunting."

"And I just thought Sven was really well behaved..."

"He is! Kristoff can't _force_ him to do anything, just ask him to. If they weren't with the trolls right now, I'd have him explain everything."

" _Trolls_?!"

* * *

"Your turn," Anna says some time later. They're back in the living room after taking a break for lunch. Anna's pretty sure her voice will never fully recover if she talks much more, so she hopes Elsa can take the reins for a bit. "I feel like I have a monopoly on secrets here, but is there anything you'd like to tell me?"

Elsa looks thrown by the question, blinking a few times before answering. "Not really?" she says uncertainly, "I mean…nothing importantly, really."

"Oh, come on!" Anna exclaims. "That's the worst non-answer you could give. _Everyone_ has secrets. You gotta give me _something_ , Elsa."

Elsa considers her plea, looking like she's close to spilling something big. "Well, there is one thing," she says evasively, fingers worrying the hem of her shirt. "I really like…chocolate," she smiles unexpectedly, satisfied with her answer. "I might love it, actually."

Anna snorts. "That's the worst kept secret in the world." She tries to hide her disappointment with Elsa's lack of forthcoming, knowing that there really are some secrets that can't be told. Instead, she treads into safer territory. "Would it be okay if I ask some stuff about your..." She gestures vaguely at the whole of Elsa, "fae-ness?"

"That'd be fine, though I don't know how much I can answer," Elsa replies, somehow looking both anxious and relieved by the shift in topic.

Anna, who still hasn't forgiven Elsa for the futakuchi remark earlier, decides it's time for a little overdue fun. "You have insanely blue eyes," she starts ominously, "You can whip toupees off professors with well-placed gusts of snow. Your skin is pale white and ice cold...How old are you?"

Elsa glares at her, clearly getting the reference. But being a good sport, she plays along and supplies the expected answer. "Twenty-two."

Anna leans forward, narrowing her eyes in an attempt to look serious. "And how long have you been twenty-two?"

Elsa now has a playful—if a bit questioning—smile on her lips. "Umm, five months?"

Anna rolls her eyes. "No, but really. I swear I won't judge if you're like, sixty years old or something. Well..." she reconsiders, "maybe I'll judge a little." Of course, the likely answer is that Elsa really _is_ twenty-two, but it's more fun to pretend otherwise.

"What are you talking about?" Elsa asks, smile starting to fade.

"Well, Jack is _really old_ , but it's definitely not obvious to most people. I mean..." Anna's eyes widen. "Oh no. _Jack_. We need to talk to him." How the hell did she manage to forget about him?

"Jack who?" Elsa's expression darkens considerably. "You don't seriously mean—"

Anna chuckles nervously. "Yeah, funny story...Jack Alkaev is also an ice fae."

About a million different expressions cross Elsa's face in rapid succession—there's annoyance, confusion, surprise...and something that looks like fear. Her breath comes out short and fast when she stammers, "W-what do you mean by 'really old'? How...how old is that, Anna?"

 _Shit_.

Anna was working under the assumption that Elsa didn't ask any questions about ice fae because she already knew about her kind. Now she realizes it's because she's nervous. _Really_ nervous. In a hopefully calming voice, she answers, "Umm...he's only like, two hundred or so?"

All the color drains from Elsa's face. She leaps up and begins to pace the length of the living room, hands on her head, gripping at her hair. "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god..." Little snowflakes begin to float down from the ceiling, but Anna doesn't think mentioning them will help with the situation. So she joins Elsa instead, wanting to comfort her somehow.

Before she can say anything, Elsa spins back around towards her. "Are you..." She struggles to get her words out, choking on them,"Are you saying that I'm _immortal_?" Once the question is out, Elsa's breathing becomes even more erratic, and the snowflakes she's unknowingly creating come down heavier.

"I..." _am totally not prepared for this_ , she thinks, trying not to panic. Because then _both_ of them would be hyperventilating messes, and she can't have that after things are finally starting to look better. "I'm going to call Jack. He'll be over soon. Just...just try to keep your breathing even for me. Can you do that, Els?"

Elsa gives her the tiniest possible nod. Anna instantly darts into her room for her phone, praying that Jack will answer.

"Hello?" a groggy voice answers on the fourth ring.

"It's Anna. Come over to my place as soon as you can. Elsa showed me her powers, but it turns out you were right—she doesn't seem to know the true extent of what it means to be an ice fae. She's kind of freaking out right now, and you need to give her like, a crash course or something."

"Give me your address," Jack responds, sounding substantially more alert. "I'll be over as soon as I can."

* * *

It's not even twenty minutes later when there's a knock on the door. During that time, Anna has been doing breathing exercises with Elsa while running a soothing hand up and down her back. It seems to be helping somewhat, if the lack of snow in the living room is anything to go by.

Anna opens the door, a greeting dying on her lips when she sees what Jack is wearing.

"Give that here!" she hisses, snatching her beanie off his head. "Elsa won't take you seriously if you wear that. And it looks better on me anyways."

Jack flashes her a quick smile. "Keep telling yourself that." Under the breezy remark, there's an undercurrent of nerves, and he smooths out a wrinkle in his short-sleeved shirt before stepping over the threshold.

As Anna leads him down the entryway, a half-forgotten memory swells up. She was nine the first time she saw Jack, though she didn't officially meet him until years later. Anna always had trouble sleeping back then, and pacing the length of the hallway usually helped her relax her twitchy limbs.

But on that night, she was drawn to the hushed voices downstairs. Curious, she circumnavigated the creaky steps until she could see the back of her parents' heads. They were talking at the kitchen table, facing a pale young man. She watched the three of them conduct business with rapt attention until she noticed the stranger looking at her. Instead of drawing attention to her, he gave her the smallest of nods and pointed his eyes to the ceiling, signalling that she should go back upstairs.

Anna spares a smile at the memory; it seems like Jack is capable of being thoughtful if he wants to be. Before he turns the corner to the living room, she grabs his arm. He looks at her, impatient, while she scrutinizes him. His AU Alumni shirt is wrinkled and worn thin, looking like it's one wash away from disappearing entirely. His pants, like all of his other pairs, are frayed at the ankles.

When Jack looks like he's about to walk on without her, she whispers, "Be nice to her. And be careful where you step; I think the floor's still wet with snow in a few places."

He stares at her for a long moment, gaze unreadable. "I'll go easy on her. Though Anna..." he sighs, looking down at where her hand is still holding onto his shirt. "Some of the stuff we talk about will get pretty personal. She may not want you listening in."

Anna drops her hand. "Of...of course." She would respect Elsa's boundaries, but would stay by her side until told otherwise.

With that, they enter the living room, where Elsa is curled up on the couch. She springs up the moment she sees Jack, eyes narrowing at his presence. "You're not going to hit on me again, are you?" she asks, an icy bite to the words.

Jack cringes at the less-than-friendly greeting. "No. That was a mistake on my part," he says, waving the proverbial white flag. "I apologize for my behavior earlier. It was uncalled for."

Elsa gives him a tight nod in response, still not relaxing. Anna clears her throat and they both look at her. "So, Elsa," she begins haltingly. "If at any time during this talk you want me to leave...just say the word and I'll be out the door. Or, umm...I can leave now if that'd be better—"

"No!" Elsa nearly shouts, nerves getting the better of her, if her widened eyes are any indication. "Please, just...stay for now. I really want you here." She looks so distressed that Anna is by her side before she finishes speaking.

"It's okay," she murmurs, "I'll stay. Let's just sit down, alright?"

Elsa complies, tucking herself against the armrest. Anna sits right next to her, hand reaching out and taking hold of Elsa's. Elsa gives her a thankful squeeze and settles their hands on her lap, fingers curling tightly, as if never wanting to let go.

Jack heads into the kitchen to grab a chair, planting it in front of them and sitting on it backwards. "So..." he says to Elsa once he's settled in, chin resting atop the seat's backing, "do you mind telling me how Anna here found out you were fae?"

Elsa gives him an embarrassed grimace. "I kind of...pinned her to a tree. With an icicle." Her thumb brushes over the back of Anna's hand in apology, the tender gesture making Anna's pulse jump unexpectedly.

Jack looks impressed despite himself. "That's pretty awesome,'" he concedes. "Do you know how you did that?"

"I—" Elsa's brows draw together in thought. "No. It was just instinctive. I wanted her to stay where she was, and the next thing I knew, she was stuck to the tree."

Jack looks to Anna, quirking an eyebrow. "What the hell did you do to get her so riled up?"

"She followed me on a case," Anna answers, knowing Jack wouldn't get Elsa in trouble with the Guild for doing so. "It was a shifter in human form. To Elsa, it looked...a lot like something else." This time, Elsa's hand goes cool in her own. "Hey," Anna tells her, her thumb repeating the same gesture on the pale skin that Elsa had done just a moment ago. "I don't blame you for what you did."

"A shifter..." Jack repeats, almost looking surprised. He gives Anna a quick once-over. "Congrats on not dying," he deadpans.

A soft, agitated sound emanates from somewhere in Elsa's throat. "Those fucking idiots..." she mutters under her breath.

Jack half-heartedly hides a smirk behind his hand. Once he composes himself, he changes the topic back to their previous one. "Anna says she suspected you were an ice fae when you healed her. I'm curious to know how you managed that. Have you healed people in the past?"

Anna feels Elsa's gaze on her, feels her stiffen next to her. "I...used to heal my mom," Elsa starts quietly, "Back when she was alive, she was in pain a lot. She told me how to do it so I wouldn't hurt her. When I saw Anna that night...I knew I could help her. I just didn't know she was awake."

"I'm glad I was." Anna gives her a gentle smile, squeezing her hand again. "And I never got to say 'thank you' for that...so thanks."

Elsa shyly dips her head, not knowing what to do with Anna's gratitude. When Jack clears his throat to regain their attention, she looks back up. "So your mom was an ice fae?" he asks. He's sitting straighter in the chair, a tense set to his shoulders. "Do you know what she was sick with?"

Elsa narrows her eyes. "I never said she was sick. But yes, she was fae."

"She was always cold, wasn't she?" Jack presses, ignoring her look, "And would I be correct in assuming your father wasn't in the picture, that they weren't together?"

"How do you know—?" Elsa's looking alarmed now, her grip tightening on Anna's hand to an almost painful degree.

"Shit," Jack breathes, running a hand unhappily over his face. "Am I right to assume that your mom never said what caused her illness?"

"N-no. All she said was that she had it before I was born. She died when I was sixteen." Little trembles are starting to go through Elsa, and Anna thinks her hand is beginning to go numb. From the cold, or Elsa's grip, she can't tell.

"She held out for that long..." Jack's mouth slants into a thoughtful frown as locks eyes with Anna. "This might be where you want to excuse yourself. What I'm about to talk about involves an illness every ice fae should know about."

"It's not genetic, is it?" Anna asks, words falling out in a nervous jumble. She already lost her mom, and her dad might as well be dead. She can't lose Elsa too. She just _can't_.

Jack raises a calming hand before she can say anything else. "It's neither genetic nor contagious. But it _is_ an illness that requires discretion. It's one of the reasons why there aren't that many ice fae around."

Anna releases a breath she didn't know she was holding. "Okay. That's...that's good then." She turns to Elsa. "I'm going to wait outside, like Jack said." She speaks again when she sees an argument brewing in the other woman's eyes, hurriedly amending, "You can relay the information to me afterwards, if you want. But for now, this should stay between the two of you."

It's somewhat taboo to know about the weaknesses of other races—even though the Guild has stomped down on violence between all the different species, there's always the chance that sensitive information might fall into the wrong hands.

Elsa reluctantly lets go of her hand. "You'll be outside?" she asks anxiously, fingers lingering just a moment longer.

Anna gives her a quick hug before standing up. "Right outside," she promises with a reassuring smile. "Jack can tell me when I'm allowed to come back in."

She turns and heads into her room to put a jacket on, and belatedly realizes that the beanie Jack stole is still crammed in her pocket. Once her jacket is in place, she takes the beanie out and fits it over her hair.

She's at the door when she hears Jack begin to speak. While she can only make out every few words, she can tell that he's channeling the calm, confident voice he uses in his lectures.

It's colder outside than she thought it would be—darker too. Apparently, she and Elsa have spent the entire day doing nothing but talking.

With a very unladylike grunt, she sinks into a comfy-looking snowdrift and pulls out her phone. A new game of Candy Crush awaits her, and while it's a weak attempt at distracting herself, it's better than nothing.

But even as she hits an impressive streak, she can't help but think about what's being said inside the apartment. She should be in there—be Elsa's anchor in case any of the things Jack is telling her is upsetting. And her mom's sickness...hearing about it will hurt Elsa, even if it happened years ago.

" _Arrrgh_ ," Anna groans at the darkening sky. She wishes she could contact Kristoff and tell him everything that's happened since yesterday, but he has absolutely no cell service that high in the mountains. Besides, he deserves a break from her craziness.

Right as she ponders moving to her car to escape the cold, Jack sends her a text telling her to come back in.

"Yes!" She jumps up and takes the apartment stairs two at a time, definitely _not_ slipping on any ice on her way up. She opens the door and hurriedly kicks off her shoes.

Jack and Elsa have moved to the kitchen table, where Elsa's pale arm is resting between the two of them. Jack is putting on a pair of latex gloves, and a needle glints menacingly from its spot on top of a blood bag.

"Whoa, what the hell is this?" Anna exclaims at the sight, "I'm gone for forty minutes and you're already stealing her blood?"

"She gave me permission," Jack says irritably, "I can take it back to the lab and analyze it. Figure out if she's fully fae or not. And it's okay if you're not," Jack adds quickly to Elsa. "There's a lot of interbreeding going on because there's so few of us. The only problem with that is that even one generation of this dilutes your powers and lessens your lifespan."

Oddly enough, the information makes Elsa perk up. "You mean there's a chance I'll have a human lifespan?" she asks hopefully, only to wince when the needle enters at the inside of her elbow.

Jack looks like he's a breath away from frowning. "It depends on your lineage," he says stiffly. He seems offended, and Anna can guess why; he just told her a lot of personal information about their shared species, yet Elsa would rather cling to what she's more familiar with—a life that _doesn't_ stretch across history.

Elsa considers the information carefully, scrunching her delicate eyebrows together. "And would it also mean the...the illness we talked about wouldn't affect me as much?"

Jack nods in affirmation. "Even so, you should still be careful."

Elsa's eyes flash to Anna. "I will be," she says softly—a heartfelt promise, with unspoken words lingering beneath.

Anna doesn't know what _that_ means, but at least Elsa doesn't seem too shaken up by whatever Jack's been telling her. The three of them sit in relative silence for the next fifteen minutes as Elsa's blood pools into the bag. The sight makes Anna look away more than once, since after three years, she still can't stand the sight of blood draining out of a human.

Once the bag is full, Jack slides the needle out of her arm and packs his supplies away in a bag he must've gotten from his car. Only Jack would carry around needles, blood bags, and biohazard boxes.

"Anna will give you my phone number," Jack says as he continues packs up. "We can schedule times for your lessons."

A surprisingly broad smile comes to life on Elsa's face. "That'll be great!"

"Wait, what lessons are these?" Anna asks, feeling out of the loop. She doesn't like it.

"Jack said he would help me with my powers," Elsa says, hopping off the chair. "Mom was never well enough to do it, so I don't have as much control over them as I'd like."

"We'll need it to be in a fairly secluded place." Jack finishes packing and gives Elsa a meaningful look. "Call me if you have any questions, even if they seem dumb to you. And I'll loan you some books about ice fae the next time we see each other."

Elsa nods along and follows him to the door. "Thanks for everything," she says, apparently having forgiven him for their first meeting.

"No problem." Jack looks to Anna, smirk sliding into place. "And tell me about the shifter sometime, will you?"

Anna rolls her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Now get out of my house." She ushers him out the door and shuts it, satisfied that she managed to get the last word.

"Well...what did you think of him?" Anna questions Elsa now that they're alone again. "He's not a _total_ tool, is he?"

"He was a lot kinder than I thought he would be," Elsa admits. "And he actually seemed excited to teach me everything about being a fae."

"Jack is full-blooded," Anna explains as she pushes away from the door. "He probably knows everything there is about ice fae. Speaking of..." she takes a few steps towards Elsa, "Do you want to talk about this illness, or anything else he said?"

Elsa looks down and shakes her head slightly. "No, not right now at least. It...was a lot to take in."

Anna nods in understanding. "Okay. How about the bestiaries? Do you want to look over any more of them?"

"I'd love that," Elsa says shyly. "Is it okay if I read them in your room?"

Anna opens her bedroom door in answer. "Go for it. Though I can't say I understand the appeal of the place." She picks another few books for Elsa to read through, confident that they'll keep her busy for a while.

When she turns around, she sees that Elsa has a gentle smile on her face as she surveys the space. "I like your room," she says simply when she catches Anna staring at her.

"Heh, well...I guess it's not too bad," Anna grants her, feeling a bit flustered. She hands off the books and crawls into her bed. "I'm going to be on my phone, so feel free to stay for however long."

Elsa takes up her earlier spot, sitting against the wall with her legs stretched out in front of her. They stay in companionable silence, which is only broken when Elsa needs Anna to translate the Latin sprinkled throughout the pages. Both of their voices eventually drop off—Anna becomes absorbed in watching cute cat videos, and Elsa apparently skips over the Latin phrases she comes across.

Sometime later, Anna releases a yawn and turns her phone off. "Okay, I lied. I need to get some sleep soon. But if you want to keep reading..."

Her voice trails off when she sees the state Elsa is in. The other woman is still leaning against the wall, but her head keeps sinking towards her chest before she jerks back up. This happens a few more times, much to Anna's amusement. "Elsa'" she calls out, "I think you need to get some sleep too."

"Nnghh," Elsa mumbles, eyes barely open. "Not...tired."

"These books will still be here tomorrow," Anna says in exasperation, though she can't deny how cute Elsa looks in her sleepy state. "There's no need to rush through them all now."

Elsa doesn't answer, but her head slumps towards her chest once again. "Do you want to sleep here?" Anna offers, already scooching over and pulling the covers back.

"My room is...just down the hall," is Elsa's feeble protest. She tries to get up, but her body seems to change its mind halfway through the process—her butt hits the floor again.

"And my bed is right here," Anna says patiently, trying not to smile. Honestly, she could watch sleepy Elsa all night; it would make for the most adorable blackmail ever.

Elsa thinks hard, looking like she's trying to remember the answer to a difficult question. "Mmm...fine. Let me in." She manages to stand up successfully this time and all but falls into the bed. When Anna rearranges the blankets so they come up to Elsa's shoulders, she mutters, "This really isn't necessary."

"Well I don't see you leaving," Anna points out reasonably.

A pouty silence is Elsa's only reply.

After reaching over Elsa to turn out the light, Anna settles on her half of the bed. She's unused to having a warm, solid body beside her, and it makes her feel more self-conscious than she'd like to admit.

"Hey," she says softly after a few minutes. "Can I tell you something about ice fae I recently learned? It was in a bestiary."

She feels Elsa shift beside her. "Go for it," Elsa replies, sounding marginally more awake than before.

Anna clears her throat. "'Light of hair and skin, these beings are human-like in appearance. Female ice fae are said to sing rock ballads in the shower when they think they're alone.' You never told me you did that, Elsa."

"You weren't supposed to be home," Elsa whispers in mortification, _definitely_ awake now.

Failing to stifle her giggles, Anna continues in a much less serious voice, "Th-there was a footnote, too. It read 'Also, they're bad at making coffee. Like, the worst.'"

"I hate you," Elsa mumbles between Anna's laughter. Pink blossoms across her cheeks and Anna sees her fold her arms over her chest.

"Oh come on," Anna says when she finally catches her breath. "You know you love me."

Elsa stiffens, but then releases a heavy sigh. She turns towards Anna, hair seeming to glow in the moonlight. All at once, she's impossibly close, moving so smoothly towards Anna's side of the bed that she doesn't have time to react.

"Go to sleep," Elsa murmurs, voice close enough to send goosebumps over Anna's skin. There's a light, quick pressure against her cheek and then Elsa retreats again, her back to Anna.

Anna touches her face, fingers skimming across her cheekbone that suddenly feels hotter than usual, and that makes her acutely aware of everything around her—from the gentle rise and fall of the covers as Elsa finally succumbs to sleep, to the faint sound of a snowplow in the distance.

_Did Elsa just..._

She turns to face the wall, quiet at last and feeling a little sheepish. Apparently, all it takes to shut her up is a goodnight kiss. The thought is enough to earn a small smile as she closes her eyes and nestles into her pillow.

* * *

There's an arm wrapped around her middle, a leg between her own. During the night, Elsa had migrated over to her side, using Anna as a human body pillow. Maybe she should feel uncomfortable by the sensation of Elsa's body against her own, or at least a little embarrassed.

Instead, it feels like her heart's seizing up. It beats erratically, so hard that it should wake Elsa up. Using the same breathing exercises she did with Elsa earlier, she wills herself to calm down.

If it was only her heart acting up, that would be one thing. But then Elsa shifts even closer, her grip tightening on her shirt and coming dangerously close to lifting it up.

" _Anna_ ," she breathes, the word a dreamy sigh.

Anna shivers at the way Elsa's voice wraps around her name...and yeah, her heart is out of control again. She's surprised, and more than a little dismayed, that the word is enough to elicit a dull throbbing between her legs.

Suddenly Elsa's leg is _way_ too close and Anna gently pries herself away, moving until she's practically pressed into the wall.

This is _not_ good, not good at all. Anna closes her eyes and tries to regulate her breathing again.

Because she's felt this way before, a long time ago, with Hans. She's not ready to go down that road again, and not with _Elsa_ of all people. Elsa means too much to her, and romance would only fuck that up what they already have. Anna would fuck that up.

Besides, it didn't mean anything. Elsa's sleeping in Anna's bed, in Anna's room, reading Anna's books, so it makes sense that she's subconsciously thinking about Anna. There's absolutely no reason to think that utterance happened for any other reason. After all, why would anyone like her romantically?

She nods to herself, trying to calm down, still trying to convince herself. Because really, this is a _major_ overreaction on her part. Just because Elsa is amazing, thoughtful, _stupidly_ gorgeous, and clearly cares about her doesn't mean Anna has feelings beyond friendship for her...right?

…

…

...

Oh god.

She's _so_ screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, we've finally reached the 'Anna realizes she has kissy-feelings for Elsa' stage. To (hopefully) stem the reviews claiming that Anna is an absolute idiot for still not realizing Elsa likes her, let me just say there's a very valid reason for her obliviousness. All I will add is that it has to do with two men in her life. So...do you guys have any theories on the things still left unanswered? I'd love to hear them!


	9. Momentum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoutout to my beta, [The Wandering Quill](https://www.fanfiction.net/u/1472024/The-Wandering-Quill), to whom I owe my never ending gratitude for fixing this up for everyone else to enjoy. Also, tw for blood, as there's quite a bit towards the end of the chapter.

The next time Anna wakes up, she finds herself plastered to the wall; Elsa's body a safe distance away.

The other woman is still asleep; knees curled up towards her chest and lips parted slightly. During the night, her hair had been tugged free of its braid and it loosely falls around her face, making her look…making her look really—

Anna bolts out of bed.

What the hell.  _What the hell._

Thoughts of how sexy Elsa looks should not be popping into her head. Not Elsa, who is a  _friend_ , goddammit.

She stalks towards the kitchen and angrily goes through the motions of making coffee. Maybe it was a dream. A really weird dream. A really,  _really_  weird dream.

That makes sense, right? Elsa doesn't seem like the kind of person who who would gently—albeit unconsciously—nestle into someone. Who would murmur her bed mate's name in her sleep for no reason. So yeah, it makes sense that what happened was just a  _dream_ , right?

But if that was the case...why would she have a dream like that in the first place?

"Arrgh." Anna's forehead hits the table with a dull thud.

That's the problem with attraction, isn't it? The moment it's out in the open, it can't just be stuffed back inside. Anna  _knows_  this, knows this all too well. She's been down this shitty road before and all it got her was a broken heart, and the vague suspicion that she was doomed to repeat her mom's mistakes.

If she was attracted to literally anyone else, this wouldn't be anything but a minor annoyance. But Elsa is the target of these stupid feelings. The Elsa she  _lives with_ , who  _trusts_   _her_  maybe more than anyone else ever has, who is painfully  _amazing_  in every way.

Her heart feels like it's twisting in her chest and she shivers against it. Her hand clutches at her mug of coffee as she rides out the uncomfortable sensation until it passes a minute later. She rubs at the spot, wondering if she should go to the doctor or something—

"G'morning," Elsa's voice sounds from behind Anna, causing the hand holding her mug to jerk, sloshing its contents around unhappily.

"Oh, hey Elsa," Anna replies with a nervous smile, hoping her voice doesn't sound squeaky.

Elsa steps into her sight line, and Anna sees that her hair is gently mussed and one of her cheeks is imprinted with the wrinkles from her pillow. A bestiary is nestled against her chest, looking as if it belongs there. There's a small, thrilled part of Anna that really likes the idea of Elsa coming out of her bedroom after a night of sleeping next to her, that thinks it should happen more often.

A strangled sound attempts to make its way out of Anna's throat, and she redirects it to sound as if she's coughing.  _What is wrong with me?_  she panics internally,  _Seriously, this is_  not  _okay_.

Oblivious to Anna's struggles, Elsa levels a sleepy smile at her and says, "Thanks for letting me use your bed last night. I didn't realize how tired I was." She opens the fridge and takes out some orange juice before joining Anna at the table.

Anna gives her a jerky nod. "You're always welcome in my bed." She cringes as soon as the words leave her mouth.  _Oh god, that was too suggestive, wasn't it?_

Indeed, Elsa colors slightly at the words, immediately pushing Anna into damage control mode. "I-I mean if you want to keep reading in my room, then you should totally use the bed! It's like,  _right there_ , so the convenience is always nice. And I have no problem sleeping on the couch—"

Elsa wrinkles her nose at the thought. "I'm not going to kick you out of your own bed."

"Ha, yeah. I guess that'd be weird," Anna plays off her suggestion as casually as she can, though Elsa doesn't look like she's buying it.

Anna resists the urge to bury her head in her hands, choosing instead to down half of her coffee and hope Elsa won't pry any further. Shit, this is  _exactly_  what happened with Hans; the flighty nerves, the word vomit—and yes, she finds out when she stands and almost trips over her stool—the sudden onset of clumsiness.

She sets her half-empty mug in the sink and gives Elsa another quick, twitchy smile. "So, umm. Do you have any plans today?"

Elsa's still giving her a strange look but obliges her with an answer, "Jack said he wanted to scope out possible locations for our lessons. He wants it to be somewhere outside, where there won't be anyone to bother us. I told him that I could try and help him out."

"I know the perfect place," Anna blurts out unthinkingly. She clamps her mouth shut when she realizes what she's just done.

Elsa flashes her an excited smile. "Really?"

Anna knows how much these lessons will mean for Elsa, and she knows how important they are. Still, the next words she says aren't easy ones. She bites her lip before directing her answer to the floor. "That place I showed you after we met with Jack…where my mom trained me? I think that'd work for you guys."

That place is personal, the last piece of her mom that she really has. Anna hadn't brought any of her mom's things with her when she first moved into the apartment, thinking they'd be safer with her father. And now who the hell knows  _where_  he is, and what he did with her mom's clothes and books and pictures.

"Anna?" Elsa's soft voice brings her back to reality. Without her noticing, the other woman had slid off her stool to stand close to her.

"It's really safe," Anna continues stubbornly without knowing why, "right on the edge of the forest while still being secluded. You guys won't get any creatures or humans wandering by—"

" _Anna_."

"—and besides, it's not like I'm using it anymore."

There's a pause as Anna registers her blasé tone, and then she feels the blood drain out of her face. The words are a solid punch to the gut—one she didn't think she'd still feel after three years. It's stupid, that's what it is. Three years is more than enough time to not get weepy over a mom who's never coming back—

A cool hand comes up to her cheek, cradling it until Anna refocuses on Elsa. "I'm sure we can find someplace else," Elsa says, voice painfully gentle and full of understanding. "It doesn't have to be there."

Anna's breath hitches and she takes a small step back, unable to think properly with Elsa so close. Her shoulder hits the doorway of her room, stopping her progress. Elsa remains where she is, unable to keep the worry from her face. She glances down at the hand she held Anna's face with, and then back at Anna.

 _It's not you, it's me_ , Anna wants to say, but she realizes how utterly confusing those words would be right now. Instead, she tries to get her feelings in check and her thoughts in order.

After a moment, she awkwardly clears her throat. "You guys should use that spot," she says, glad to hear her voice coming out firm. "I don't want it to become some kind of empty memorial. I trained there and I think it'd be cool if you did too. I'll call Jack and see when he wants to check it out."

With that, she makes her graceless exit into her room and closes the door behind her, shutting Elsa out. Anna waits until she hears her walk away before exhaling shakily.

She can do this. She can deal with this weird Elsa thing, she can keep her mind out of the past, and she can call Jack.

But that last thought is the only one that doesn't seem completely impossible right now, so she dials his number and puts her phone to her ear.

* * *

The ride to the clearing is...not the funnest thing ever. Anna has decided to just forgo talking until her awkwardness passes, and Elsa seems confused and unhappy by the silence slowly filling the car like some kind of toxic gas. Anna tweaks the volume knob, hoping Lorde will help her make it through this ride in one piece.

Jack is already parked at the edge of the forest when Anna and Elsa arrive, leaning against the front of his car. Anna can't stop an amused huff from leaving her mouth, causing Elsa to look over at her questioningly.

Anna gestures at Jack's car. "He has a convertible. Who else in Arendelle has a convertible?" It's a rather beat-up one at that—rust is encroaching on the blue paint and there seems to be a gaping hole in the roof's fabric.  _Honestly, does Jack even own_ one _nice thing?_

A small smile curls around Elsa's lips. "Now that I know what he is, it does seems like he isn't very good at hiding his fae-ness."

"That's what  _I've_  been saying!" Anna exclaims, glad that someone finally agrees with her. There's a blissful pause where they look at each other, both smiling widely, and slow realization comes over Anna.

Maybe...maybe this won't be so hard after all. Maybe she can still joke around with Elsa—still give her a hard time, without stumbling over her words (or random objects) like an idiot.

Still, the car feels like it's getting smaller the longer they look at each other. "Let's...we should go see Jack," Anna says eventually, undoing her seatbelt.

"Right..." Elsa responds, though when her hand goes to her seatbelt, she grasps it tightly instead of undoing it.

Anna can see the white-knuckle grip she has on the device and despite not wanting to get too physically close to Elsa, she leans over and releases the belt from her death grip. "There's nothing to be nervous about," she says soothingly, "If anything, this will be fun. Probably." She doubts Jack subscribes to any Spartan-style training methods, but then again, who knows with him?

Elsa takes a calming breath and nods. "You're right. Nothing to worry about."

They get out of the car, Anna inhaling a lungful of the sharp winter air. Jack pushes away from his car when they near him, giving them both a nod in greeting. "I've got some books with me," he directs towards Elsa, "I'd like you to look over them when you get the chance."

She gives him a small nod but stays silent, suddenly timid. Jack raises an eyebrow and turns to Anna, seemingly for an explanation.

"It's the training," Anna says, hoping she's not stepping on Elsa's toes by saying this, "She... _we_  don't know what to expect."

Jack stares at them for a long moment. "Oh," he finally says, lips quirking into an amused smile, "I thought we'd start today, if this place is good. I promise it won't be anything  _too_  strenuous."

"Today?" Elsa echoes faintly. "Just like that?"

Jack shrugs. "I don't see any reason to wait. Today will just be something small." He gives her an encouraging, if incredibly awkward, pat on the shoulder. "No pressure, okay?"

This time, Elsa's nod is accompanied by a small smile.

Anna's eyes shift between the two of them. "So are we going anytime soon?" she asks more impatiently than intended.

Jack gives her a too-knowing smirk. "Lead the way, Theron."

Oh, she does  _not_  like his tone.

Anna shoots him a suspicious glare but starts making her way to the clearing. She's not jealous per se, because that would be completely stupid; Jack has said he doesn't have any romantic interest in Elsa, and Elsa is gay. It's not like anything of that nature would take place between them, but she's still slightly irked.

Or—and it pains her to admit this—maybe she  _is_  jealous.

She almost gets clotheslined by a low-hanging branch, which immediately brings her back to her senses. She discretely looks over her shoulder to make sure the others didn't see her, but they're both involved in talk about ice fae.

Anna locks her gaze forward after that, silently agonizing over the fact that just yesterday she was completely fine with Jack and Elsa talking, and now it bothers her way more than it should. Crushes are the dumbest things ever.

"Here we are," she announces a minute later, spreading her arm out towards the clearing. "It's secluded, there's plenty of room for fae things, and look! There are even rocks that can double as benches! I'm telling you, this place has it all." Despite her conflicted feelings earlier, she's come to the conclusion that Elsa using this place would be for the best. Who knows? Maybe it might help Anna gain some much-needed closure about her mom—something she apparently hasn't gotten yet after three years.

Jack carefully rakes his eyes over the clearing, and soon he's walking around the perimeter, touching the stone walls and walking across the frozen pond. Elsa lingers near Anna, seemingly content with not exploring. Eventually, Jack comes back to them, looking satisfied. "This is perfect," he says with a grin. "Lydia always did have good taste."

Anna grimaces, wondering how he knew her mom used this place before. "Don't say weird things like that."

Jack holds his hands up in mock surrender before addressing Elsa. "I was thinking we could start with temperature regulation."

"What exactly does that entail?" Elsa asks cautiously, folding her arms over her chest. She's moved closer to Anna, who in turn takes a baby step away from her. She doesn't want to end up looking like a love-struck idiot in front of her and Jack.

"It's pretty self-explanatory," Jack responds easily, "using certain techniques, ice fae can regulate their internal temperature. On hot days, this will make you feel cool, and on cold days," he gestures towards Anna, "you won't have to wear all the layers Anna here does."

"So you too can wear t-shirts in the winter like a weirdo," Anna murmurs under her breath. So what if she's wearing long underwear, a hoodie, gloves, and a jacket? Even after twenty-one years of living in Arendelle, she's still miserably cold every winter.

"Would you like to wait by the cars?" Jack asks her mildly, making her out to be a misbehaving child.

Anna makes an irritated sound and stares down at the ground. She's a grown ass  _adult_ , dammit. He can take his stupid question and shove it up his—

Elsa takes a curious step towards Jack. "Are you sure I'd be able to do this? Even though I don't think I get as cold as other people, I've never felt comfortable being out in the snow unless I have a jacket on. Besides, we don't know how much of an ice fae I even am."

"Good points," Jack acknowledges with a nod. "Even though I have your blood, I've run into a slight speedbump…" he has the grace to look a little ashamed, "I currently don't have any human blood to test it against."

His eyes slide over to Anna, who vehemently shakes her head. "I'm not giving you my blood!" The very thought of watching it slowly drain out of her makes her queasy. Getting injured while hunting is expected, but she won't willingly part with her blood otherwise.

Jack looks unapologetic. "It was worth a shot." Turning back to Elsa, he continues, "Since you can create icicles and know how to heal, I'm going to assume you have enough fae in you to regulate your temperature."

"I suppose that makes sense," Elsa murmurs. She takes a deep breath and gives Jack a resolute stare. "What do I have to do?"

Anna feels pride welling up inside her; it's good to see Elsa accept Jack's help and she's glad she can be here to witness their first training session.

"Step one," Jack says, looking unusually serious, "we take off all our clothes."

Elsa makes a sputtering sound and looks between Anna and Jack with wide eyes. "Th-that's not really necessary, is it?" her voice is almost a squeak and her ears begin to redden, quickly followed by her cheeks and neck.

Anna is doing her best not to picture Elsa naked, which is proving to be pretty difficult. She already knows Elsa has smooth, pale skin, and seeing it all showcased in front of her would be—

( _Awesome? Unreal?)_

—completely inappropriate. Yeah, definitely that last one. Not that she can really stop her mind from going there once the idea has been planted.

"All of our training sessions will involve nudity. I thought I mentioned that last night…" Jack muses aloud, seemingly ignorant to the panic his words have caused.

Anna, who's feeling as if her cheeks are hot enough to turn snow to steam, marches over to him. "Stop messing with her!" she hisses, tugging on his jacket to bring him closer. "She's never had this kind of training before, and now you're acting like a...like a really mean person!"

Jack leans away from her to give her another punch-able smirk. "Who says it's  _her_  I'm messing with?" he says lowly so Elsa can't hear him.

Anna narrows her eyes before pushing him away in irritation. "You're the worst." She knows he's not the kind of guy to spill the beans and tell Elsa her feelings, but he's definitely the type to be an ass about it.

He laughs unexpectedly. "I really am," he says, actually sounding _proud_  of that fact. "And Elsa, I was just joking. Clothes will remain on at all times."

Elsa glares at him, still red-faced and suspicious. "If this is the kind of treatment I can expect, I'll find someone else who can train me." There's a 'take no bullshit' tone there, and Anna nods in agreement beside her. Jack can mess with her whenever he wants, but Elsa is off-limits. Dragging her into this is pretty childish for a centuries-old fae to do.

For his part, Jack at least looks the tiniest bit apologetic. "You're right," he says, smile now gone, "it was unprofessional for me to make inappropriate jokes. I got carried away."

"It's fine," Elsa says stiffly, though Anna can't tell if it's from nervousness or residual annoyance. "Just tell me what I need to do."

Jack rubs his hands together in anticipation. "Okay, first things first: take deep, calming breaths that come from your diaphragm until you feel settled. It might help if you close your eyes."

Elsa follows his instructions, eyelids fluttering shut. Anna watches as Jack begins to circle around Elsa, moving her arms and widening her stance. "Good," he says after a couple of minutes, "The next step is to picture something that makes you feel warm. It can be anything—the sun, spicy food," his eyes move to Anna, "a person's smile. Keep that picture in your mind and imagine how it makes you feel."

As Elsa concentrates, Anna wonders what her own image of warmth would be. Jack might have been onto something with that last suggestion of his. A smile given by the right person could certainly make her feel warm. A hug would be even better.

That thought reminds her of the first hug she and Elsa ever shared—the one that had taken place right after the sigbin assignment, when Anna was still covered in blood and dazed from coming across a dead body. Elsa had absolutely no reason to give in to her request for the embrace, yet she did so with almost no hesitation.

"I...I think I feel something!" Elsa says excitedly, startling Anna out of her reverie. She turns her attention back to Elsa, who doesn't look at all different except for the happy, contagious grin on her face.

Jack looks over at her for a moment before saying, "Good, now open your eyes." Elsa's smile shrinks the moment she does so. "Your brain is trying to reconcile the differences between your internal temperature and the environment around you," he continues, as if expecting her disappointment, "The more you practice, the easier this will become."

"So to keep this up, I always have to have the picture in the back of my mind?" Elsa asks with a disappointed frown. "That seems like it would be distracting."

"You'll get used to it, and it'll become subconscious before too long. Temperature regulation is something you can practice anywhere, so I expect to hear about your progress at the next session." Jack explains, waving his index finger in a lecturing way.

"Is that it?" Anna asks, surprised at how little actually happened. "Are you already done for the day?"

"Well...yeah," Jack says like it's obvious, "I didn't want the first lesson to involve snowstorms or icicles or flying—"

" _Flying_?!" Elsa exclaims, eyes growing as big as saucers at the news.

"You never told me you could fly!" Anna exclaims, miffed, "That's a total game changer!" She had no idea ice fae were capable of going airborne, and the very thought of Jack floating through the air is highly amusing to her.

Jack rubs at the back of his neck. "It's been a while since I've tried to do it," he sheepishly admits, "And Elsa may not even be capable of doing it, which is why I would  _really_  like some human blood to test her against."

Anna points an indignant finger at him. "Don't change the subject! Can you...can you fly now, or like, levitate or something?" That would definitely be in her top ten coolest sights ever if he's telling the truth.

"I would really like to see that," Elsa agrees in her best 'eager student' voice. "It would be very educational."

Anna sees that Jack is close to crumbling. No surprise there—Elsa  _can_  be very persuasive with only a few words.

Anna decides to push him just a little further. "Unless you're lying to us…" she says, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

Jack throws a haughty look her way. "You really have no idea what ice fae are capable of, do you?" He looks around the clearing again, taking special care to focus on the snowy ground. He sighs in apparent defeat. "Fine, fine…I'll show you. Though you might want to shield your faces."

Elsa hurries over to stand by Anna, brimming with excitement. "I might be able to  _fly_ ," she whispers to Anna, sounding like a kid who just found out Santa is real.

"I know!" Anna grins, "That would be so awesome; you wouldn't have to carpool with me anymore!"

Elsa gives her a light shove and turns her attention to Jack, who has walked off to the center of the clearing, shoulders unusually stiff. "Like I said, I haven't done this in a while…" he calls out, sounding strangely hesitant.

"It's okay!" Anna answers back, "It's not like we have any other flying people to rate your performance against. No judgment here!"

Jack nods to himself and lets out a deep breath. He closes his eyes and stretches out his hands so his palms are facing Anna and Elsa. When he opens his eyes moments later, the irises flash an electric blue.

A gust of wind rips through the clearing, nearly snatching Anna's beanie off her head. She clutches onto it with one hand and raises her other arm up to keep the snow out of her eyes. Elsa leans in close to her, her shoulder bumping against Anna's. She soon loses sight of Jack, who's been engulfed by the sudden whiteout.

It doesn't take Anna long to realize that the wind is all rushing towards Jack, leaving her and Elsa red-faced from the blast. "Look!" Elsa points towards the center of the storm, "I think I see him!"

Anna squints, trying to follow Elsa's gaze. And then she spots him; riding above the wind, t-shirt rippling and hair full of snow. He's a good fifteen feet off the ground, eyebrows scrunched in concentration until he spots them.

"I told you I could fly!" he shouts above the wind, and Anna can make out the pearly-white smile on his face as he gains more altitude. "Wanna see me do a backflip?"

He's annoyingly cocky but Anna can't help but nod excitedly. Her mouth has dropped open at some point, and a quick glance at Elsa confirms that she's in a similar state of awe.

Looking as if he's standing on solid ground, Jack bends his knees and springs backwards. But something goes awry, and the wind propping him up abruptly lessens, dropping him a few feet or so. With his head now facing the ground, he frantically waves his hands back and forth to regain some control. The wind starts cutting in and out—one moment it's so strong that Jack is propelled upwards five more feet, and the next there's hardly even a breeze.

When another whiteout makes them lose sight of Jack, Anna and Elsa run towards the center of the clearing. "Jack!" Anna yells, frantically looking around. To her left, she catches the sound of tree branches snapping and hears a surprised exclamation. The wind stops completely, leaving silence and sudden clarity in its wake.

"Oh my god…" Anna's hand flies to her mouth when she finally spots Jack.

He's dangling upside down in a tree, his leg caught in a branch. He's still swinging back and forth from the force of the wind, looking dazed.

Anna and Elsa look at each other for a long moment before they burst out laughing. "Oh my god!" Anna repeats, clutching at her stomach. "T-that was amazing!"

Elsa wipes a few tears out of her eyes, smiling widely. "I'm going to find another flying teacher, if that's okay with you, Jack."

Jack just glares at them, which only redoubles their laughing fit. Elsa leans on Anna for support, but Anna's knees buckle and they turn into a pile of cackling girls. "My rib!" Anna squeals into Elsa's scarf, "I think I broke my rib again!"

The branches above their heads shake and Jack lands on the ground with an 'oomph'. "Give me a break," he grumbles, shaking some excess snow out of his hair, "I haven't done that in like ten years."

Even as the three of them leave the clearing, Anna and Elsa can't help but burst into random fits of giggling, one of them always managing to set the other off. They part with a disgruntled Jack, promising to meet up with him again next weekend for another training session.

As they get into Anna's car, there's another exchange of smiles. "Best. Training session. Ever," Elsa says in a faux-serious voice once the car is on the road, causing them to once again laugh at Jack's expense.

* * *

"This is a problem," Anna states an hour later as she looks over her calendar. On it are all the due dates for the assignments handed out before Thanksgiving break. Only an offhand comment by Elsa about Weselton made Anna remember that she even had homework to do.

Elsa looks up from her spot on the floor. She's already nose-deep in one of the books Jack gave her, and she raises a knowing eyebrow. "You haven't done any of your work?" she guesses, though it sounds less like a question and more like a statement of fact.

"I was a bit busy this break," Anna says defensively, crossing her arms with a huff. It's the excuse she always uses, but it's a damn good one. If she's preoccupied with staying alive, homework kind of gets shoved into the far recesses of her mind. "Don't tell me you finished everything already."

"I do assignments when they're given out," Elsa says primly, close to smirking. She's changed out of her jacket, and is now wearing a soft gray cardigan that makes her eyes seem even brighter than usual.

Anna stifles a frustrated groan at the observation. Ever since they arrived back at the apartment, Anna's felt off-balance. The awkwardness that was nearly forgotten in the clearing had surged back, not helped at all by the fact that Elsa has decided to claim the floor of Anna's room as her own.

It's different here than it was in the clearing—it's  _their home_ , the place they both eat and sleep and live. The space is too intimate, too personal for Anna right now. There's absolutely no way she can focus on schoolwork with Elsa only a few feet away, looking like...well, like she always does. Anna's not a complete idiot; she's always realized her roommate is extraordinarily pretty. It's just that the last twenty-four hours have made Elsa go from 'beautiful friend' to 'beautiful friend that I want to cuddle with'.

…Yeah, there's no way she can study here.

"I think I'm going to the library," Anna finally decides, sending one more glare towards her calendar before she starts packing her books and laptop away.

"What?" Elsa asks, the playful smile from earlier fading away. "You usually study here." She places Jack's book against her knees and looks up at Anna for an answer.

Anna hurriedly zips up her backpack and gives her a helpless shrug. "I...there's just books there—at the library? And I need some of them for my conservation class."  _Another brilliant lie, Theron._

Elsa stares at her for a long moment, until Anna looks away guiltily. "There's something you're not telling me," Elsa deduces, standing up with a small frown. She takes a step closer to Anna, who tries her hardest not to use her backpack as a buffer between the two of them.

"There isn't anything to tell you," Anna says, trying to sound properly defensive. "I need to go to the library for a paper. Besides, a change of study space is always nice."

"The books you need...are they related to hunting?" Elsa asks unexpectedly, unconvinced by Anna's explanation.

This time, Anna's exasperation is genuine. "No! Seriously, I just need some books for a class. Not  _everything_  I do is about hunting."

"Then that settles it," Elsa says with a satisfied nod, tucking Jack's book under her arm, "I'm coming with you."

Anna nearly drops her backpack. "What?" she squeaks.

"Like you said, a change in place could be nice. Besides..." Elsa ducks her head, suddenly shy, and Anna's throat briefly runs dry at the adorable sight, "when was the last time we just hung out together like…like normal people?"

Pushing aside her feelings, Anna tries to come up with a reasonable answer. They were together on Thanksgiving, but god knows how  _that_  ended. And in the weeks before that, Elsa was busy studying and tracking down internships. Wow, maybe it really had been a while...

The longer the silence lasts, the more self-conscious Elsa becomes. She pretends to focus her attention on a small, frayed strip of fabric on her sleeve, but Anna can see her biting anxiously at her lip, sinking further into the reclusive woman she used to be before all of…this.

_Like normal people..._

Elsa's words hit her like a solid punch to the gut. So that's it—Elsa wants to know if their friendship had been fundamentally altered by Anna now knowing she's an ice fae. Would they only talk about the supernatural from now on, instead of Anna's questionable taste in music? Would they stop watching movies together in favor of going over bestiaries?

Would Anna still be her best friend, or would she want to keep her at a distance now that she knows what Elsa  _really_  is?

Elsa shifts her weight from one foot to another when Anna has yet to respond. "I forgot, I have something I need to do," she finally says, quiet and resigned. She heads towards the door, shoulders stiff with unhappiness. "I'll see you when you get back—"

"W-wait!" Anna exclaims, hastily snatching at Elsa's arm. "Yes! I mean…yes, of course you can come," she says earnestly, "Who else can silently judge me as well as you can?"

A tremulous smile graces Elsa's features. "It's one of my greatest skills," she replies modestly, and Anna has half a mind to playfully swat her arm.

Instead, Anna gives her a gentle push towards the door. "Get your stuff then. I wanna get out of here soon."  _Before I do something stupid like…_

She takes a step closer, resting a hand against Elsa's hipbone. Her other hand trails over Elsa's pale, delicate neck before getting lost in soft, blonde hair. One more tiny movement brings them close enough to brush noses, for Anna to feel cool breath ghosting over her lips. All she has to do is close her eyes and commit—to this kiss, to these feelings. All she has to do is lean forward and—

_...kiss you._

Anna snaps out of her fantasy, instantly feeling annoyed at herself for indulging in such a stupid thing. Thankfully, Elsa is no longer in her room, otherwise she'd be looking at a red-faced, starstruck idiot.

Running a hand down her face, Anna slumps against the wall, wondering how long she can last before she says or does something that ruins her friendship with Elsa.

* * *

At this rate, she'd probably last until the end of the week. At the latest.

Anna taps her pencil against her notebook, pretending that she isn't completely distracted by Elsa. They were lucky enough to snag a table in a secluded corner of the library, but Anna still can't seem to focus on her homework. Elsa is apparently working ahead in Weselton's class, reading and highlighting passages in a book Anna hasn't even opened. There's an adorably pinched expression on her face as she concentrates on her work, and it's impossible  _not_  to steal glances at her.

Anna rubs tiredly at her eyes. Having Elsa with her  _completely_  defeats the purpose of coming to the library in the first place—the only thing that's changed is that now she can't concentrate in her new environment.

She's already wasted two hours here, dammit!  _Two hours_  trying to focus and avoid noticing all the small details Anna had never caught before, like the little flourish Elsa does when she finishes highlighting something, or the way her tongue briefly pokes out during an extensive passage, or how her hair shifts and positively  _glows_  under the library's lights when she moves her head.

Whenever she takes a quick break from her reading, Elsa somehow manages to catch Anna staring at her like a loon. Each time, Anna gives her an awkward smile and pretends to go back to her work.

The next time it happens, Elsa puts her highlighter down with a touch of finality. Catching Anna's gaze—because  _of course_  Anna's still staring at her like a lovestruck idiot—she whispers, "Is everything okay?"

Anna lets out a laugh that's a little too loud. "Yeah," she answers with a spastic wave of her hand, "why wouldn't I be?"

"You were staring at me," Elsa states in curiosity, propping her elbows on the table and leaning in slightly.

 _You're very stare-at-able_. "Sorry!" Anna says, grasping for a decent excuse as she discreetly leans away, "I was just...you know, spacing out. Thinking. And my eyes just landed on you?"

"Why is that a question?" Elsa asks, a small, amused smile curling onto her perfect lips.

Anna just gapes at her for a long moment before looking down at her hands. Why does she have to be so bad at lying? Why can't she just turn off these stupid,  _stupid_  feelings?

A sudden chill creeps down her spine, making her shiver. Another follows soon after, and goosebumps begin popping up on her arms. Anna cranes her neck upwards, wondering if she's sitting under a vent…but no, there's nothing except the annoying bright lights.

She sighs and glances towards Elsa, who's still peering at her with equal parts curiosity and amusement over her book. "Do you want some tea or hot chocolate?" Anna asks after an awkward moment of staring back. A hot drink will probably stave off her chills and give her time to clear her head of all things Elsa-related.

Elsa narrows her eyes in thought as she considers her options. "A chai would be nice," she responds eventually, "thank you."

Anna gives her a weary nod and stands up, heading towards the coffee shop on the first floor. The cold feeling follows her, spreading further in her limbs as she places her order of tea and coffee.

But by the time she receives her drinks, she's feeling somewhat normal again, though the caffeine will still help her power through her homework. When she rounds the last corner before their table, Anna finds herself slowing to a stop.

Elsa is in the same place as before, still reading and highlighting in her book.  _It's strange_ , Anna thinks to herself as she observes the other woman from afar.  _Elsa_  hasn't changed at all in the last day, but somehow she seems so different.

Before, it was like Anna was looking at Elsa through some gauzy, opaque material. Now that the metaphorical blindfold is off, Anna can really  _see_  her. And what she sees is a woman who is fiercely protective of her, who always has Anna's best interests at heart. Someone who healed her despite the danger it could have put her in, and who is kind and funny and beautiful.

In that wonderful moment, Anna is  _so_  happy she knows Elsa.

Willing her feet to move, Anna all but glides back to their table—sliding Elsa's chai towards her and drawing the other woman's attention away from her book. "You owe me twenty-seven dollars," she says, the serious tone contrasting with the silly grin on her face.

Elsa's eyebrows shoot up in surprise as she takes her drink. "Has the price for tea really gone up that much?" she asks, playing along with a smile.

"I charged you extra for the labor it took me to get it," Anna replies, sticking her tongue out and receiving a feigned huff of annoyance in return. Even if Elsa isn't romantically interested in her, it doesn't mean Anna is going to stop being her friend. It'll be difficult—if this day was any indication—but she'll be whatever Elsa needs her to be.

The rest of the night goes by quickly, though Anna is not pleased with the quality of her work. Her mind wandered too much, and her coffee didn't help as much as it usually did. By the time she and Elsa pack up to leave, Anna is exhausted and pretty sure the grades on her homework will be mediocre at best.

After Anna starts her car, Elsa turns to face her, biting her bottom lip. "Are you free tomorrow night? I was wondering if you wanted to finally watch that cheesy eighties movie together; the one you mentioned way back?"

Anna's heart flip-flops uncomfortably in her chest at the words—for a moment it's easy to pretend that Elsa is asking her on a date. Reality quickly settles in though, and Anna shakes her head. "Actually, no. As much as I'd like to see Kurt Russell bust up Chinatown, I have my psych appointment at five."

"Psych appointment?" Elsa echoes, clearly sounding confused. Her brow furrows worriedly.

"For killing the shifter," Anna rushes to clarify, "The first time someone kills a Level One, they have to attend a therapy session to make sure they're mentally healthy. Sometimes the experience can be a bit...overwhelming." She's heard stories—feral werewolves ripping people apart in front of hunters, vampires killing entire families because of insatiable bloodlust, rogue hunters who are convinced that everyone around them isn't human...thankfully Anna's experience never came close to any of those.

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Elsa's hand move towards her, only to settle back in her lap. "And...you're okay?" she asks hesitantly.

"Yeah, I guess." Anna shrugs. "I mean, it won't be the first time I've had to see a therapist." Her eyes widen when she absorbs what just slipped from her lips. A nervous laugh bubbles out of her throat. "Umm, can you just pretend I didn't say that?"

But the damage is already done—this time, Elsa's hand finds Anna's arm and gives it a comforting squeeze. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Elsa says softly, and Anna is reminded yet again of how utterly  _lucky_  she is to have this amazing woman by her side.

Anna takes her eyes off the road for a moment to give Elsa an appreciative smile. "Thanks," she says quietly, though she knows just that isn't enough. For the time being, Elsa can come to her own conclusions.

* * *

The first day back to school after Thanksgiving break moves at a snail's pace. She's disappointed to learn that Kristoff isn't in Weselton's class; when she texts him, he says he skipped out on it to spend the morning with the trolls. Rolling her eyes affectionately, Anna fires off a text informing him they have  _a lot_  to catch up on when they see each other again.

It turns out that sitting next to Elsa while Weselton drones on for an hour isn't  _complete_  torture, though it's close. In addition to accidentally brushing against Elsa's hand on their shared armrest on more than one occasion, there's also the fact that their professor is still giving them hostile looks. By the fifth glare, Anna idly wonders if she can get Elsa to blow his toupee off again.

She fares better in her other classes, though Dr. Mowgli's raised eyebrow when she turns in her pitiful looking essay is enough for her to regret how she spent the break. Maybe devoting just a little more time to her studies wouldn't be a bad idea (though for the record, she still blames Elsa for the shabby quality of last night's work).

By the time she pulls up to Dr. Westin's office, she's feeling...okay. She isn't nervous about her impending appointment, since there's nothing to truly worry about. Her boss said it would only take one perfunctory meeting for her to be cleared and out hunting again.

Almost as soon as she gives her name to Westin's secretary, she's led into his office. It's a surprisingly small space, containing only a desk, two chairs, and a rather old couch. Framed degrees hang on the wall and on the far wall is a bookshelf filled with thick texts. Westin is seated behind the desk, and he stands when she enters the room. Without his bulky winter coat, he looks surprisingly thin and lanky, with dark hair that seems to be slowly creeping up his scalp.

"Ms. Theron," he greets her with a quick, firm handshake, "you're looking much better."

She slides into one of the chairs, giving him a slightly embarrassed smile as she recalls how bloody and beaten she was. "I certainly hope so."

"How have you been feeling since then?"

"Oh, you know…" Anna waves a dismissive hand through the air, "kinda tired, a little sore. Otherwise, I'm doing fine."

"And mentally?" he inevitably prompts her.

"I'm fine," she says again, her voice firm. "The situation with the shifter...it was really awful, but I made it through okay." I've been through worse.

Westin takes notice of her pensive expression and changes the topic. "How long have you been hunting?"

Anna stares at the wall behind him, furrowing her brow. "About five years total, with three of them being solo. Though if a case is too much, I'll still get some help."

"Who usually helps you?"

"My friend Kristoff. He's a really great hunter and I've known him since we were in diapers." That reminds her, she'd have to make sure he had those sweet potato leftovers he promised her…

"Why did you decide to become a hunter?" Westin asks, and from her peripheral, she can see him scribble something down on a piece of paper, tone remaining clinical.

Anna has to think about that one for a moment, her gaze drifting back down to him. "Because my parents both did it, I guess. I was raised to be a hunter. I don't want to be a Level One or anything, but for the time being it's a good way to support myself."

"Why aren't you interested in being a Level One?" The question seems innocuous enough, but it feels like it's edging into the reason why she's here in the first place.

She could give a hundred different lies, but she knows that's not how therapy works. If she lies, the only person she'll hurt in the long run is herself. "I would feel uncomfortable hunting Level Ones," she quietly admits, "especially those who may have family or loved ones. And there's so much more danger involved—it's just not something I'm interested in dealing with."

Westin nods like that makes sense. "I've looked through your hunting record; it's very impressive," he states, taking time to splay out more papers on his desk. "I believe you'd have the makings of a good Level One if you were interested."

Not knowing how to respond to that, Anna simply waits for him continue, wondering where he's going with this. "That being said..." Westin's chair creaks as he shifts his position. "Since the night of the shifter, have you had any nightmares?" Direct and to the point.

"No, but that's—" That's because she's been either been dead tired or sharing a bed with Elsa. She hasn't really given herself a lot of time to think about the shifter and how it looked, with its dark blood splattered across the white snow. Though now that she  _is_ thinking about it, she can't help but see how closely the shifter resembled another, much more painful death. "No," she repeats in a quieter voice, hand tightening around her armrest.

Westin's stare feels like it's boring into her skull, trying to look for the answers he wants to hear. "I'm wondering how you felt about the shifter's final transformation," he says after a slight pause.

"You...you mean its human form?" Anna asks, more to give herself time to think rather than for clarification.

Westin just stares expectantly at her, blinking once behind his glasses.

"I knew it wasn't really a woman," Anna says, unsure of what he wants. "No matter its transformation, I never forgot what it really was."

"Still, that must have been painful for you to witness," Westin muses, straightening up in his seat and leaning his elbows on his desk, "considering the circumstances of your mother's death."

The air suddenly feels thinner and Anna stiffens. "She has nothing to do with this," she replies sharply, "Nothing at all." She should have known there was a chance of him bringing up her mom's death, but it's still a topic she doesn't want to talk about too much.

"Right," Westin says slowly, dark eyes full of understanding, "but your mother died in a similar fashion, didn't she?"

Anna's teeth grind together, the muscles in her jaw pulling taut. They stare at each other, Anna staying silent so she doesn't say something she'll regret.

After a few tense moments, Westin finally moves the conversation forward. "Earlier today, I received the files from your previous therapist, Dr. Marek." He says nothing after that, leaving Anna to wonder if she's supposed to fill in the silence.

"Those sessions were mandated as well," she eventually says, relaxing slightly. After her mom's death, she was forced to meet with a therapist once a week for nearly two months before she was cleared to hunt again. She sincerely hopes that won't happen this time—she would be fine with never seeing Westin again after today.

"You were going through a very difficult situation at the time," he starts, a frown crossing his face for the first time since she's stepped into his office. "Quite frankly, I'm somewhat surprised that Dr. Marek ended the sessions so early."

Now it's Anna's turn to frown. "What do you mean?" she asks, puzzled by this new information. "He told me that I had made more than enough progress." She hadn't particularly liked Marek, but she had opened up to him about the feelings regarding her mom at the time.

Westin's frown thins for a moment. "Perhaps I was speaking out of line," he admits, though he doesn't seem convinced by what he's saying.

Anna feels a surge of defensiveness at his doubt. "I'm not saying I'm completely fine. I still think about my mom every day. I still can't stand the sight of blood when it's coming out of people; I don't even want to walk by the blood donation buses on campus. But I am better...so much better than I was before," she says firmly, because she needs him to believe that. "And with the shifter...the only way you can kill it is to make it bleed out. I had no other choice."

"Okay," he says in a placating manner, leaning back in his chair, "I think we'll be fine ending the session here, unless there's anything else you'd like to talk about."

The abruptness of his statement takes Anna by surprise. There's a lot she could talk about with him; how her father left her, how Hans cheated on her so soon after that, how Elsa is making her feel things she really wishes she wasn't...but she finds that she can't open up about those things.

At least…not yet. Not with him.

"I'm fine," she answers, the words sounding hollow in her own ears.

Westin gives her one last shrewd look before nodding. "Alright, then. While I don't think killing the shifter will affect your ability to hunt, I do want you to know that my door will always be open if you want to talk about your mother or anything else."

Anna nods mutely, standing up when he does the same. He rounds the desk to shake her hand one last time, and leads her to the door. "It was nice meeting you, for real this time," he says, smiling slightly.

She smiles back at him out of reflex, though it feels unnatural. When she walks to her car and slips into her seat, she finds that the smile is still there, hanging to her like the frost on the windshield—temporary, brittle and a paltry imitation of the real thing.

That meeting certainly wasn't what she expected; it feels like she barely even  _talked_  about the shifter. Why her mom had to be the main topic of conversation, Anna isn't sure. All she knows is that she left feeling far more agitated than when she first came in.

When she returns home, she barely registers Elsa's presence in the hallway when she passes her. It's not until Elsa repeats her name that Anna focuses on her. "Oh, hey," she absently greets her.

Elsa leans against the wall, looking over Anna in concern. "How was your session?" she asks gently, but carefully.

"It was…" Anna briefly purses her lips into a thin line, trying to find the appropriate word for it.  _Upsetting? Shitty? Completely unhelpful?_ "It kinda sucked, actually."

Elsa's features soften with empathy, and Anna vaguely wonders if she had her own experience with this sort of thing before…considering her own mother's death. Elsa takes a few steps closer until she's standing only a couple of feet away, and softly asks, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Anna shakes her head, though she's no less appreciative of the concern. "Not really. I think I'm just going to call it a night."

"But you haven't had dinner yet," Elsa points out, her eyebrows drawing together.

"I'm not really hungry," Anna murmurs, finding it to be the truth. Despite the fact that she hasn't had anything to eat since lunch, it feels like she's almost uncomfortably full. Even the very idea of food makes her feel queasy. "I'll just…I'll see you in the morning, okay?"

Elsa is still looking worried, but she nods all the same. Her furrowed brow and concerned frown are the last things Anna sees before she closes her bedroom door. Without even bothering to take off her jeans or jacket, she curls up on her bed and stares at the mess of bestiaries on her desk until her heart hurts and her eyes grow heavy.

* * *

"Anna, p-please…" a familiar voice drifts through the still air of the forest, "Please help me."

It's the shifter from before; naked and bloody and missing its left hand. Anna stares at it from her place against the tree, in a haze from her own injuries. "How do you know my name?" she asks weakly, confused and feeling like she's about to get sick with how violently her stomach is churning.

"It's me," the creature pleads, meeting Anna's eyes with its own nearly-black ones. "You  _know_  me." Its back arches, rising completely off the ground and it lets out a scream of agony that Anna feels deep in her bones.

The shifter changes into a very different woman—one wearing a bright blue blouse, beige pants, and sturdy hiking boots. Straight hair gains the barest hint of curls as black lightens to copper. Skin becomes paler and the eyes flash a familiar green as it meets hers.

The pain is still evident in its new form, and recognition brings a wave of panic crashing against Anna. "Mom?" she whispers, the word barely making it past her lips.

A new injury appears along the side of Lydia's neck—a deep gash that causes blood to arc from it like a fountain. She gasps, attempting to stop the bleeding with her hands, but the grisly mess seeps through her fingers and splatters onto the snow around her, staining it crimson.

"Mom!" Anna cries out, immediately stumbling in her direction. She falls down, broken ribs curving inwards towards her lung. She can't think clearly through the pain and the panic, and bile begins clawing its way up the back of her throat at the bloody sight in front of her.

"Ahh...Anna. S-stay calm, I'll be—" Lydia's words cut off as her throat seems to collapse, a wet gurgle bubbling out of her lips instead. She begins to thrash around as her body enters its death throes, the hand pressing around her neck utterly coated in obscene, glistening red.

Panting, her vision beginning to blur with tears, Anna finally manages to crawl over. Trying to remember her training, she places a shaky hand over her mom's wrist, feeling a weak pulse churning out more and more blood. Her mom's eyes are staring straight up at the stars, glassy and unblinking.

"Not...not yet, mom," Anna nearly sobs, fingers trembling uncontrollably and sliding across red, slick skin. "Help is coming. J-just hold on a little longer…"

There's no response, and soon the blood draining out of Lydia's neck slows to a trickle. Anna lifts her hand away from the gash and looks helplessly down at the body that once held her mom.

The forest feels like it's closing in around her, and her frantic breaths quickly become tiny and shrill to the point where it's difficult to breathe. She clutches at her head with her bloody hands, stained with the horrible consequences of her mistake.

This...this is her fault. She could have prevented this, could have done things differently. It didn't have to be this way...it didn't...it didn't—!

Unable to take it anymore, Anna leans back on her knees and screams.

* * *

"—Wake up, Anna! Please, get up!" Elsa's voice slams into Anna like a freight train and her eyes fly open.

She's back in her room; the light turned on and Elsa leaning over her, one arm on either side of her pillow. Blue eyes worriedly stare into hers, fear flashing through them.

Anna takes a heaving breath, blinking sweat out of her eyes as her mind tries to reorient itself. The details of the dream rushing back to her; with a sinking heart, she realizes what just happened."Thanks for waking me up," she gasps, knowing she must look like a wreck. She kicks the covers off, forcing Elsa to abruptly stand up and step away from the bed to give her room.

"What are you doing?" Elsa asks as Anna begins searching under books and papers for her phone. "You were  _screaming_ , Anna. God, it looked like you were having a  _seizure_! Are you going to tell me what that was about—"

"No," Anna says shortly as she starts looking for her car keys as well, "I'm going out."

She needs Kristoff  _now_ , like she always does after one of these nightmares. Which...damn, this is the first one she's had in over a year. This better not be the start of some sort of relapse. So much for therapy  _helping_  her—all it did was dredge up her worst memory and add even more horror to it.

After Anna retrieves her phone and car keys, she turns to find Elsa blocking her doorway. "You told me you weren't going to lie to me anymore," she says stubbornly, crossing her arms. In her cotton shorts and overly-large sleeping shirt, Elsa looks anything but threatening. But of course, she's not  _trying_  to look threatening; she looks like she's worried and just wants answers.

"Then it's a good thing I'm not lying," Anna snaps back, because she is  _tired_  and thought she was done with having these kinds of conversations with Elsa. The flash of hurt passing across Elsa's face, though quickly stifled, has Anna immediately feeling like crap. "I...I'm going to Kristoff's," she hastily explains, tone far less curt than before.

"There's nothing I can do?" Elsa quietly asks, and Anna nearly winces at the lingering hurt in her voice. "You can't just stay here...with me?"

The idea of being comforted by Elsa is a  _really_  nice one, but she and Kristoff already have a foolproof system in place for situations like this.

"I'm sorry," Anna says, her voice cracking. She swallows hard, clutching her phone and keys tighter in her hands, and pushes past the other woman. "I can't do this right now."

Before she can have any second thoughts about not staying home, Anna dials Kristoff's number and presses her phone to her ear as the door closes behind her. It takes a painfully long time for him to pick up, but he eventually does and Anna loves him for it.

"Hello?" his groggy voice crackles through the speaker, "What's up?"

Anna stares down at her feet, trying to swallow the lump in her throat. "Hey, Kristoff," she says softly. "I'm really sorry to call you but I...I had a nightmare." The words sound so juvenile that Anna can't help but grimace as she opens her car door.

There's silence on the other end of the line as she slides into the driver's seat, then a rush of static as Kristoff exhales. "Are you on your way over?" he asks, sounding a little more awake now. Anna can hear some rustling on the other end and imagines he's getting out of bed.

Anna bites her lip, hesitating. "Not yet. I didn't want to be presumptive. I mean, I know you just got back and it's the middle of the night so—"

"Anna," Kristoff's voice is firm when he cuts her off, "come over."

Her shoulders relax, as does the grip on her phone. "Thank you," she says tremulously before hanging up.

Before she heads over to his place, before she even turns on the car, she gives herself three minutes. Three minutes to let out her frustration against that stupid fucking dream and how it ended—how they  _always_  end when they involve her mom. Three minutes to bang her fists against the steering wheel and scream and cry.

When she's done, her eyes are red-rimmed, though her hands don't stop shaking until she pulls onto the main road.

* * *

Kristoff wordlessly hands her a mug of steaming hot chocolate and sits next to her on the couch. He's wearing a pair of baggy sweatpants and a shirt he's had since he was seventeen, blond hair sticking up in every direction.

"This is the first one I've had in over a year." Anna says bleakly, tilting her head back to stare at the ceiling. They're the first words she's spoken since she's arrived, and hearing them out loud makes her feel uncomfortable.

Would this be the second coming of new, even more horrific nightmares?

"Why do you think you had it?" Kristoff asks conversationally, sipping at his own drink. That's the thing about Kristoff—he's the only one who knows how to help Anna after these bad dreams. He was always straightforward and honest when it came to her issues with her mom. In the months after she died, Anna was practically living at his place.

Anna resettles herself against the cushions, because this is going to be a long story. She fills him in on everything he's missed over break: the meetings between Jack and Elsa, the fight with the shifter and how she and Elsa revealed each other's secrets, and the therapy session that ultimately proved to be detrimental.

Through it all, Kristoff listens carefully and displays all the emotions a captivated audience should—when Anna recalls Jack's failed attempt at flight, he laughs loud enough to wake up Sven.

"So that's everything, huh?" Kristoff shakes his head incredulously as Sven settles back down for sleep, growling softly in what Anna assumes to be annoyance. "I'm gone for less than a week and miss all the good stuff. The only thing I don't get is why you had the nightmare tonight rather than right after the shifter. Was it only because Westin brought up the similarities between the shifter and your mom?"

Anna frowns in thought. She herself had seen the similarities between the two deaths, but even  _then_  she still hadn't had any bad dreams. "Well," she slowly begins, "the night I got back, I was dead tired. And I slept with Elsa last night—"

Kristoff's eyebrows shoot up to his hairline. "Wait,  _what_?!"

"I didn't mean it like that!" Anna exclaims, immediately trying to backpedal. "We just shared my bed! Elsa was tired and I was trying to be nice, but then...but then…" Oh hell, this isn't how she wanted to tell Kristoff about this, but she's already in too deep. "I realized that I liked Elsa. In more than a friendly sort of way. I mean...maybe I've subconsciously known for a while but it didn't become apparent until last night."

Kristoff's reaction is completely unexpected.

He suddenly stands up, and the hand not holding his mug thrusts skyward in an enthusiastic fist pump. "I knew it!" he crows, a triumphant gleam in his eyes even as Sven gives a sleepy bark in their direction. "Have you told her yet, or did she tell you? I bet she was the first to confess. She confessed first, didn't she?"

Confusion overrides any amusement she finds at Kristoff's response. "What are you talking about?" A strange buzzing fills her head, and the distant part of her she's tried to ignore screams that she already knows the answer.

Kristoff looks down at her, grinning in an infuriatingly smug way. "I already know she likes you. Hell, she's probably liked you since before you knew she even  _existed_. So has anything happened yet? Have you, you know…" he waggles his eyebrows suggestively, "kissed yet?"

The buzzing grows louder, more insistent, as she feels the blood leave her face. "Elsa doesn't like me," she says in confusion, as if Kristoff just told her that two plus two is five and the moon is made of cheese. "Why would she like me?"

The very thought is a strange one, and something that hasn't even crossed her mind in all of this. She's already resolved to preserving her friendship with Elsa, and she wasn't going to push for anything further, because doing so would end with both of them getting hurt.

Kristoff deflates slightly at her response, shaking his head. "You...don't think she likes you?" he repeats slowly, the words not seeming to compute in his mind. Putting his mug aside, he kneels down and grabs Anna's shoulders like he's trying to shake some sense into her. "Anna, she  _adores_  you. It's obvious to anyone with a pair of eyes."

"Then I guess mine must be defective," Anna retorts, shaking his hands off. "Just because she's gay doesn't mean she likes  _me_."

Kristoff blinks in surprise, the ghost of a smile on his lips. "I didn't even know if she was gay or bi or anything else. I just thought she was Anna-sexual."

Anna cringes at the word. "Don't say things like that; it's not funny."

"For the love of—" Kristoff runs an impatient hand through his hair. "I'm not trying to be funny or make light of your feelings. I'm telling you the  _truth_ ," he earnestly insists, "Something I probably should have done earlier. I guess I thought you'd figure it out for yourself."

Anna looks him over; at how imploring and bright his eyes are, and how flushed his cheeks have become.  _He's really telling the truth_ , she realizes.  _Which is...which means…_

"Oh god," Anna groans, bringing her knees up to her chest and allowing her forehead to fall against them. "Holy shit."

This makes things worse— _so_  much worse than they could've been.

"Whoa, there." She feels Kristoff sit on the couch again, and a hand begins to rub soothing circles along her back. "What's wrong? You both like each other; this is a good thing!"

"It's really not," Anna mumbles into her knees. She lifts her head to look at Kristoff. "It's actually the worst."

To Kristoff's credit, he doesn't roll his eyes or blow her off with a sarcastic remark. Instead, he fixes her with an inquisitive look, lips pursed into a thin line. "What's really bothering you about this?"

"I just…" Anna shrugs helplessly, unsure of how to start. "I don't want a relationship. I know I said I'd probably try to date again, but maybe I was lying to myself."

Kristoff's gaze hardens. "This is because of Hans, isn't?" he asks lowly. From his place on the floor, Sven growls at the name. "What he did was despicable and you deserve so much better than that. Elsa is nothing like him; she's a  _good person_  and she thinks the world of you."

The conviction in his words warms something inside of her.  _But still…_  "You say she likes me, that she," Anna blushes at the very idea, " _adores_  me, but I never saw that. What is that supposed to mean?"

Kristoff chuckles, shaking his head. "It means you're probably the least observant person in the world. You weren't looking for any signs of romance from her because you were already  _so sure_  they didn't exist. But the way she  _looks_  at you...how she seems to brighten whenever you talk or touch her...yeah, the signs are there."  
_  
Is that really true?_

Anna thinks back to how far Elsa's come since they first met—how she would barely even look at her, and is now initiating hugs and comforting touches. How Elsa sometimes blushes around her; how a shy smile sometimes curves to her lips; how blue eyes linger longer than necessary—

"Maybe you're right," she reluctantly admits, "Maybe I  _am_  an idiot."

"That's more like it!" Kristoff says cheerfully, grinning broadly. "So, did you want to stay the night?"

The question reminds her of how late it is, and how soon school will be starting. She stands up and begins to put her jacket back on. "I think I'll be fine for the night. This really wasn't what I was expecting when I came over, but I do feel better. Sort of."  _I haven't really thought much about the dream since I came here, so I guess that's a good thing..._

Kristoff walks her to the door, absentmindedly stretching out his arms along the way. "Let me know if you need anything," he says, squeezing her shoulder as he gives her an encouraging smile. "And with Elsa...just try to see for yourself."

* * *

When she returns home, she finds Elsa sitting against the wall of her room. For once, there's no bestiary with her; she's just staring down at her hands in thought. She seems to startle when Anna comes into her sightline.

"What are you doing in here?" Anna asks as she takes her jacket off, surprised to hear how flat her voice sounds. She was a bundle of nerves on her way back here, stuck between denial and acceptance of Elsa's feelings for her. She's too tense to have a conversation with her right now—what she needs is some time to reflect on Kristoff's words before she sees Elsa again…though now that plan has been unintentionally ruined.

Elsa quickly stands up, brushing a loose strand of hair away from her face. "I was waiting for you," she says it like it's obvious.

_Just like old times._

The thought has Anna frowning. "I said I was going to Kristoff's. You could've gone back to sleep."

She watches Elsa's face carefully, and sees both hurt and confusion flicker over her features. "I know," Elsa says quietly. She squares her shoulders, an unexpected glint of steel in her eyes.

"And I know you and Kristoff have a lot of history, but…" She swallows hard before continuing, gaze never leaving Anna's, "I want to be someone you come to when you need help. I can be that person, if...if you want."

The words have Anna wanting to bolt out of the apartment because of how heartfelt they are. Instead, she finds herself shaking her head almost frantically. "You don't want that," she says weakly, "you don't know everything."

"Then tell me!" Elsa exclaims, moving close—too close—to her. "The only reason I don't know everything is because you won't tell me. I don't want to butt in where I don't belong, but if something is hurting you, causing you nightmares, I can help—I want to help. "

"You can't!" Anna explodes, fists clenching at her sides. "Because after three years I still have nightmares about my mom! That's  _beyond_  help, Elsa."

The silence that follows her outburst is suffocating, and not even taking in a lungful of air can stop Anna from shaking. From what, she's not entirely sure.

She flinches when she feels Elsa's hand on her shoulder, guiding her towards the bed. Elsa sits down beside her, that same hand trailing down her arm to gently hold hers. The coolness flowing out of Elsa's hand calms Anna down a little, but it's not nearly enough.

"What happened?" Elsa asks softly, her voice patient and soothing.

There's a part of Anna that still wants to run, to snap at Elsa and tell her that this doesn't concern her. But she's exhausted, and maybe she needs Elsa's comfort more than she'd like to admit.

"My mom died in the summer before I started college," Anna finally starts, her free hand clutching at her knee. Her eyes stare straight ahead, towards her bookshelf and all the items there that used to belong to her mom. "We were hunting a [centicore](http://themonsterblogofmonsters.tumblr.com/post/79217003015/yale-or-centicore-enemy-of-the-cockatrice-and), which...it's not even that dangerous, really. Practically a deer with horns instead of antlers. It should've been an easy relocation but then…"

Anna pauses, takes a shuddering breath. "Mom was checking over the knots we tied over the horns. Centicores can move them in any direction, almost like they're whips. But...one of the knots was loose and...my mom, she was leaning over him. The horn sliced into the side of her neck, tearing right through her carotid. There was...there was so much blood, Elsa. So  _much_ , all over the place. I was next to her and it splashed on my face, in my mouth…"

Her grip on Elsa's hand causes her knuckles to turn white, but she can't seem to let go. "Hunters are trained in field medicine. I always did well in the classes but I just...I lost my mind seeing her like that." She pauses again, trying to keep her breathing even. "I did everything wrong. Instead of trying to stop the bleeding, I started screaming and cursing. I couldn't focus enough to call for a medic for about a minute."

Anna sniffles, wiping at her nose. Her voice grows thicker with each word. "By the time I finally called for help, she had lost consciousness. I was told to put my fingers in her neck, see if I could slow the bleeding. But it didn't  _work_ —" Tears are running down her face now, and she wonders if Elsa can even understand what she's saying. "She was gone before the medic arrived and I couldn't move. Half of my arm was covered in blood— _her_  blood—and I couldn't…I just couldn't move away."

When Elsa moves to wrap her arm around her shoulders, Anna jumps up like she's been shocked. She's back in the present now, not in the forest on that warm summer day. She wipes at her face with the back of her arm and finds herself looking at Elsa.

She hasn't moved from the bed, and to Anna's shock, her eyes are gleaming with unshed tears. "I'm sorry," Elsa whispers. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that. It wasn't your fault, though. You know that, right?"

The phrase resonates inside of her, and pulls up memories of all the people who had ever used it.

"Yeah, it was," Anna says tiredly, "Because even if the loose knot wasn't my fault, I  _still_  fucked up—I wasted time while she was bleeding. So yeah, in the end, it was my fault." She chuckles emptily. "Everyone's told me otherwise, though. Everyone except…"

Her father.

He never explicitly blamed her, but he never comforted her with that trite statement, either. Come to think of it, he never comforted her at all.

"I lost my mom too, you know," Elsa says suddenly. Her voice has gone shaky and Anna hopes she isn't going to cry. "Six years ago. It still hurts, and it will every day. But we're getting through this the best we can, alright? If you ever need to lean on me, I'm…I'm here."

"Why do you care so much?" Anna spits out, turning away to stare at the floor. The words are hollow, and mean-spirited. She doesn't intend to be so harsh, but she can't help pushing against Elsa's declaration; to see if her words are truly genuine.

She draws her gaze back up to Elsa, and for the first time since they started living together…she  _sees_.

It's in the way Elsa's eyes widen slightly and her lips part. It's in the way Elsa looks at her and responds, "Because I care about you," in a voice that's so soft and gentle, Anna's afraid she might break from the unspoken weight behind it.

It's so much more than just mere  _like_. No, no, Elsa doesn't like her. Elsa...Elsa loves—

"We should get some sleep," Anna says, dazed from her revelation. The room is tilting around her and her legs can't stop trembling, threatening to collapse beneath her.

It's clearly not the response Elsa expected, and for a moment she looks so desperately unhappy that Anna wants to hug her. But her feet are firmly rooted in place, and she can't do anything but watch as Elsa stands up to walk out of her room.

"Elsa—" Anna calls, because she can't let her leave on this note. "You can...you can lean on me, too. And thank you. For listening."

The unhappy look changes into something bright and beautiful, smoothing out the worry lines and making her eyes shine. It culminates in a smile that has Anna's heart twisting inside her. "Thank you, Anna, for telling me." She quietly closes the door after she steps out, leaving Anna alone.

For a long time after that, Anna can't move, despite how cold and tired she is.

 _Elsa_  loves me.

A shiver wracks her body as she finally stumbles towards her bed.

Elsa  _loves_  me.

She pulls the covers up to her ears, curling her knees towards her chest.

Elsa loves  _me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed the centicore's description to be a little less menacing, partly because Anna is really downplaying how dangerous the creature is. Otherwise, it's pretty accurate.


	10. We Sink

Anna grimaces, flexing her fingers before tightening them around the item in her hands. She has a new enemy now: one made of thick, unyielding ice. Lifting her arm, she swings the item and it makes contact with ice, skimming across its surface without any ill-effect.

“This is bullshit!” Anna groans in frustration. She whacks the ice scraper against her windshield again, not really caring if it scratches the glass.

She had woken up in a foul mood, greeted by freezing wind and a car that had been completely encrusted in ice and snow. Despite blasting the car’s heater in an attempt to melt some of the ice, she hasn’t made much progress. At this point, she and Elsa were most likely going to be late for class.

Truth be told, she isn’t taking last night’s revelation—that the friend she has feelings for somehow likes ( _loves_ ) her—very well. She can hardly deal with her _own_ feelings, and then Kristoff just had to open her eyes to Elsa’s. In a way, she was hoping what she saw last night was a fluke, something she had projected onto Elsa.

But this morning, despite being in a horrible mood, she still saw them—Elsa’s feelings for her are painfully, embarrassingly obvious now. They were present in the way her eyes raked over Anna when she joined her at breakfast, and how she then looked away slowly, biting at her lower lip. They were present in how her eyes lit up when Anna absentmindedly noted how nice her sweater looked on her.

They’re present even now, as she looks on in gentle exasperation while Anna wields her scraper with barely-concealed impatience.

Anna can’t stand to see that look anymore. “Can’t you do something?” she demands, gesturing towards the lack of progress she’s made. “Maybe wave your hands and make it disappear?”

“I can make myself warm,” Elsa suggests mildly, refusing to snap back.

Of course.

Elsa could cause it to snow indoors, stake her to a goddamn tree, heal her of a raging fever...but couldn’t make some ice disappear. “I wish you could make _me_ warm,” Anna mutters under her breath, an irritated afterthought as yet another shiver wraps around her spine.

Elsa hears her anyway, and is suddenly encroaching into her personal space. She runs her hands up and down Anna’s jacketed arms a few quick times to generate some heat. _Friction_ is the right word, but fixating on that particular term now makes her uncomfortable. “There,” Elsa smiles, pleased with her solution and not stepping away, “does that help?”

No. It really, really doesn’t.

Anna gives her a tight smile in return before turning back towards her car, trying to ignore how she actually does seem warmer, how her cheeks feel hot, and how her pulse thumps frantically in her ears.

“I think the car is good now,” she says after a moment, not looking at Elsa. “We should probably get going.”

She doesn’t need to turn around to know that Elsa’s smile is probably fading, a worried and slightly hurt expression taking its place instead.

Anna shuts her eyes for a moment before opening her car door. She inhales deeply, ignoring how the cold air causes a pricking sensation in her nose.

She shouldn’t be lashing out at Elsa. It’s not fair to her, and in the wake of last night’s revelations, it feels like it’s bordering on cruelty. Anna had opened up to her back then, and now she’s snapping at her. Emotional whiplash is the last thing she wants to inflict upon Elsa, yet here she is, unable to stop herself from doing just that.

Her head’s a mess right now. Nightmares, memories, the weight of love against her heart...it’s too much to deal with, but that doesn’t mean Elsa should bear the brunt of _her_ frustration and confusion.

She needs to get her act together before she manages to inadvertently push Elsa away. She doesn’t want Elsa to leave—god that’s the last thing she wants—but she also doesn’t know if she can fully reciprocate her feelings. ‘Like’ and ‘love’ seem so far apart. She _just_ realized that her feelings towards Elsa were less than platonic. Meanwhile, Elsa has been in love with her for...just how long now? A month? Two? Before she even _moved in_?

Anna startles when Elsa slides into the passenger seat and closes the door. They shift towards each other at the same time, eyes catching and locking.

“Look…” Anna starts uncertainly. She rubs at her temple with a gloved hand, not sure what she wants to say. _Is this really how you treat someone you like? Freaking pathetic._

“We don’t have to talk about it,” Elsa says unexpectedly, her gaze sliding to the floor, “I’m _glad_ you opened up to me, but I don’t want that to make things weird between us.”

Anna swallows hard. Of course Elsa can tell she’s acting unusual—she’s never been too good at hiding her feelings. But she supposes she can count herself lucky that Elsa thinks her attitude stems from their talk last night. It’s the best she can do to reply, “I don’t want things to be weird. I just really...I’m not feeling very good right now.”

It’s a completely lame excuse and judging by tightening of Elsa’s shoulders beneath her jacket, Anna can tell she’s not buying it. Elsa doesn’t push the subject though, apparently having said what she wanted.

For once, Anna doesn’t have the heart to turn on the radio as they make their way to school in complete silence.

* * *

By the time Friday rolls around, Anna is _exhausted_. It’s not the kind of exhaustion that comes from anything physical, as her hunting ban was officially lifted just hours ago. No, it’s some horrible blend of mental and emotional fatigue that’s dragging her down.

It’s stupid to feel this way, she knows. The moping around she’s doing is entirely of her own creation—if she were a better person, she could just tell Elsa why she’s avoiding her, why she can’t seem to give her anything but stiff gestures and one-word replies.

_It’s because you’re in love with me._

But if she says those words, everything would irrevocably change. So here she is, stuck in limbo and too scared to take the next logical step forward and admit her own feelings to Elsa. It’s something she’s not ready for. She has enough emotional baggage to fill a cargo plane and it would be completely unfair to subject Elsa to it, whether the other woman was willing to carry it or not.

She’s been going over these thoughts again and again like a broken record, and must be looking outwardly miserable. Elsa’s tried to talk to her, probably thinking her moodiness is still due to their talk about Anna’s mom. In response, Elsa’s gradually come to walk on eggshells around her, and it disconcertingly feels like they’re back in the early days of being roommates.

So it’s almost a relief when her pager goes off for the first time in seven days. Anna immediately pushes her plate of half-eaten mac and cheese away to snatch up her pager.

_[Cat Sith](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_s%C3%ACth), 4ft, 28.36°, 81.57° reloc if poss_

Hmm...not bad for a first case back. Her eyes dart towards Elsa’s bedroom door, which is cracked open. One unpleasant change this past week had been Elsa retreating back to her own room to read through Jack’s books. Anna doesn’t want to admit it to her, but she really misses seeing Elsa studying on the floor of her room.

Anna stands and timidly makes her way towards Elsa’s door. After a gentle rap against the wood, she pokes her head in. “Hey, Elsa?” she says to announce her presence. From her spot against her bed, Elsa looks up at her silently, surprise evident in her features—this is the first time she’s approached Elsa directly in the last few days. “I finally have a case. It shouldn’t be too bad, but I probably won’t be back before midnight.”

Elsa sits up at that, her book forgotten. Anna tries not to notice how the light casts artful shadows across the smooth planes of her collarbones. Giving up, she turns her attention to the carpeted floor as Elsa responds, “Are you okay to go?”

Anna nods mutely, not wanting to put her foot in her mouth by potentially saying something stupid.

“Can Kristoff go with you?” Elsa presses, and Anna catches herself before she rolls her eyes in exasperation. This case should be _painfully_ easy; having him come along would just waste his time.

“I’ll be fine,” she mumbles, still staring at Elsa’s carpet. Kristoff might have his own case tonight and even if he doesn’t, she'd rather not drag him into this.

She hears bedsprings creak and Elsa’s barefeet enter into her sightline. “Is the creature dangerous?”

Anna shrugs as nonchalantly as she can. “It’s a Cat Sith; basically a big kitten. Nothing to worry about.” It was probably being relocated just in case someone thought it was a real cat and tried to take it home.

Silence settles long enough for her to start fidgeting and she finally lifts her head to meet Elsa’s eyes. And the look Elsa gives her...it’s clear she wants to tell Anna to be careful, and is worried that maybe she’s not ready to go back into the field. But she doesn’t say anything, just keeps her gaze focused intently on Anna.

Anna finally sighs in defeat. “Fine, fine. I’ll see if Kristoff is free tonight.”

The smile she receives at that is almost enough for her to lean forward and press a kiss against Elsa’s lips. She curls her hands into fists, nails scraping at her palms. “I...I’m going to call him now,” she mutters before making a beeline out of Elsa’s room.

“Kristoff!” she nearly shouts a few minutes later into her phone, trying not to sound too desperate. “Are you free to help catch a Cat Sith?”

She can practically feel his confusion emanating through the line. “Umm...sure?” he replies hesitantly, “Is there a reason you need me there?”

Anna pinches the bridge of her nose. “Elsa wanted me to ask you,” she mumbles, hoping he won’t tease her.

Those hopes are immediately dashed—she hears him chortle as he says, “Of course. Not even dating and you’re already whipped.”

Anna scowls and imagines shoving him into a pile of snow.

“You’re the worst and I hate you.”

* * *

  
“Y’know…” Kristoff muses an hour later, poking at snowflakes as they fall in front of him, “this is one step above luring it into a box held up by a stick.”

“I know,” Anna responds glumly. The trap they’ve made is ridiculously simple—a collapsible metal cage is hidden underneath a layer of snow, ready to spring shut around its victim like a venus flytrap once a certain amount of pressure is placed on it. In the middle of the cage is a small bowl of cream Anna had picked up at the store on their way here.

Neither of them know how long they’ll be playing the waiting game out here, as Cat Sith are fickle creatures whose only real weakness is the taste of cream (though Anna is convinced that string and laser pointers would probably work just as well).

“So I’ve been thinking—” Kristoff begins, a troubling glint in his eyes.

Anna cuts him off with a wave of her hands. “Nothing good starts with that phrase!” she exclaims, shifting slightly so they’re sitting shoulder to shoulder. “What are you up to?”

“Nothing,” he denies innocently even as his lips pull into a grin. “I just think we should have a coming out celebration for Elsa tomorrow night. Get some drinks or something.”

“‘Coming out’?” Anna echoes, eyes narrowing.

Kristoff nudges her with his shoulder. “Coming out as fae," he emphasizes, and Anna groans at his wording. Ignoring her, he continues, "She got through her first lesson with Jack; that alone merits celebration.”

“That sounds like a terrible idea," Anna says firmly. But the thing is...it really _doesn’t_. She hasn’t done anything too special for Elsa since knowing her secret besides giving her a few bestiaries. Did those even count as gifts?

“I’ll put something together,” Kristoff decides like she’s already agreed.

Anna simply looks towards their trap, knowing she won’t fight him too much. Even if the occasion is in her honor, there’s still a chance Elsa wouldn’t be interested in going out. And besides…

“I’ve been avoiding her,” Anna quietly admits after a moment. “It’s not fair to her at all, but I can’t help it. She probably won’t want to go if I’m there.”

Kristoff favors her with a sidelong glance. “This can all be taken care of very easily, you know. I mean, this is an instance where a kiss would _literally_ make everything better.”

She almost says ‘ _I don’t want to kiss her_ ’ out of reflex, but they both know that would be a lie.

“So what am I supposed to do...just march up to her and go for it?” she asks with a weak laugh, only half-joking.

“That’d be a very good start,” he says with a wicked grin. “To be honest, I’m surprised she hasn’t tried to initiate anything.” He pauses for a moment in consideration. “Unless she _has_ and you were too blind to notice.”

“Oh god,” Anna groans, leaning back a little. “I don’t think anything like that has happened.” She would have noticed a come-on from Elsa, right? Unless her obliviousness truly knew no bounds, which is...well, not _entirely_ improbable.

She absentmindedly flexes her fingers, trying to regain more feeling in them. She’s been noticing that over the last week, her gloves haven’t been keeping the cold out as much as they used to.

Thoughts of buying a new pair are quickly dashed when Kristoff shouts, “Move!” before roughly shoving her away from him. Anna hears the fabric of her jacket tearing, and feels a faint scratching sensation sliding along the back of her shoulder.

Out of instinct, she tries to turn around and swing what must be the Cat Sith off her, but its claws only dig further into her shoulder, puncturing skin this time. “Feel free to help!” she yells in Kristoff’s general direction as she continues her struggle.

In its quest to reach the cream, the feline had pinpointed her as competition to be taken out. The Cat Sith is almost the size of a fox, and Anna is finding it more difficult than usual to get it off and _away_ from her. She rolls onto her back and the creature follows her, now scratching at her face and chest.

“ _Fuck_ ,” she hisses, leaning away from the sharp claws. She reaches for the knife in her booth but can’t get her stiff fingers to curl around the hilt. The weapon drops harmlessly to the snow as the Cat Sith takes another swing at her. Anna deflects its claws with her forearm before trying to grab ahold of the paw, but her hand still isn’t cooperating, thus allowing for an opening. The Cat Sith manages to rake three long, clean lines across her shoulder down to the top of her chest before Kristoff hauls it off of her.

The creature instantly begins squirming around, but there’s little it can do in his outstretched arms. He marches over to the still-hidden cage and throws it down with enough force to topple over the bowl of cream. He yanks his arm back before the cage can snap around it, panting. The Cat Sith inside glowers at him even as it begins licking at the spilled cream.

“T-thanks,” Anna says once she catches her breath, suddenly glad she took Elsa’s advice and invited Kristoff along.

But Kristoff shakes his head, worry flitting across his features. “What was _that_?” he asks, eyebrows furrowing. “This should have been a piece of cake for you. Do you...do you think you need more time off?”

Anna can feel her face burn at the insinuation. She doesn’t know _why_ her reactions were so slow tonight, and how the creature managed to sink its claws into her so many times. She stares down at her right hand in thought, slowly curling and uncurling it, finding that some stiffness still remains. “I don’t know what happened. My hand...” Anna trails off, trying to keep the apprehension crawling up her spine out of her voice “Maybe it was just an off night.”

Kristoff stares at her for a long moment, the silence between them broken by only the Cat Sith still lapping at the cream. “Let’s get this guy to his new home, alright?” With that, he turns away, but not before Anna sees another flash of worry cross his face.

* * *

It’s strange to come home to an Elsa who knows about her job. Just like before, she’s still up and waiting for her...but _unlike_ before, Anna no longer needs an excuse ready. Though when she meets Anna at the door, her eyes still rake over her to check for injuries.

The look doesn’t make Anna feel uncomfortable, even if she knows what else might be behind that gaze. Instead, she feels...protected, maybe even _pleased_ that someone like Elsa can care so much about her.

Anna carefully shrugs out of her jacket and hangs it up before facing Elsa again, which turns out to be a mistake.

“You’re bleeding!” Elsa is all too close again, leaning down slightly so she can be at eye-level with Anna’s torn shirt. Her eyes dart back towards Anna’s face, faintly accusing in the way they narrow slightly. “I thought you said Cat Sith weren’t dangerous.”

Anna chuckles awkwardly and takes a step backwards before her back hits the door. “They’re not! This was all on me. I just didn’t bring my A-game tonight.” Not that she needed any more reminders of her inadequacy tonight...

Elsa follows her retreat, eyebrows furrowing in thought. “You should take your shirt off.”

Anna blinks. Okay, was this one of those come-ons Kristoff was talking about? “Umm…”

“No! I didn’t mean—” Elsa quickly backpedals, uncharacteristically flustered and suddenly red in the face. She pinches the bridge of her nose before starting again, eyes briefly averting. “I can heal you, Anna. I know you have all sorts of...magical muck you take, but this would be a lot faster.”

“I don’t know…” Anna swallows hard. On one hand, she remembers how much Elsa helped her after the akaname poisoning, and how good she felt afterwards. On the other hand, she’d be shirtless and Elsa would be touching her. Which ...really isn’t as much of a ‘con’ as she wants it to be.

“I think I’ll just…” She gestures vaguely towards her room, hoping Elsa will step aside.

But Elsa folds her arms over her chest, stubbornly standing her ground. “I _want_ to help you, and you know you’ll feel better sooner this way,” she insists, using that damn imploring gaze of hers.

Anna shrugs noncommittally, wanting to argue without any real reason behind it. “That’s a really sweet offer, but that ‘magical muck’ is fine. And don’t ever call it that around Jack, by the way. He would get super defensive about—”

“My hands are better than any of those things and you know it!” Elsa says in a louder voice, cutting Anna off. Her mouth drops open when she realizes how that sounded.

There’s a moment of shocked silence, with Anna desperately trying to find a reply that won’t sink them any deeper into verbal quagmire. “Your umm...your hands are great, really. They’re totally fine!” is what she comes up with. When she runs a hand through her hair, she can feel the scratched skin stretching painfully across her shoulder. With a sigh, she finally gives in. “You can heal me. I’d be fine with that.”

Lately it seems like she’ll always give in to Elsa.

Elsa swallows hard, and it looks like she’s not quite sure what she got herself into. “Okay,” she says, voice wavering slightly. “Alright then. If you just want to lay on the couch, I can start.”

“You want to do it now?” Anna squeaks, heat flaring up in the tips of her ears. Right when she thought tonight couldn’t get any more awkward. “I’ll be right back.” She darts into the bathroom and closes the door, taking a moment to glance at her reflection in the mirror.

She looks completely frazzled—her hair is coming out of its braids and her shirt will definitely have to be thrown away later. Trying not to think too hard about what she’s about to do, she quickly runs her fingers through her hair until it falls loosely down her shoulders. She carefully pulls her shirt over her head, wincing as she peels some of the fabric from around her injuries.

The cuts look much worse than they feel—dark red lines outlined with dried blood stretch from her shoulder to the top of her bra (which is staying on no matter what happens). When she turns around, she sees a few more parallel lines marring the top of her back.

Honestly, she doesn’t know why she’s trying to do any kind of preparation for this. Elsa is healing her, that’s all. It’s not like they were getting ready to have _sex_ —

She stops that train of thought before it can go any further.

Since staying in the bathroom with her stupid thoughts is clearly not helping her, she opens the door and heads back into the living room, a towel clutched tightly in one of her hands.

Elsa—who had been pacing the length of the living room—stops short when she spots Anna. She can tell Elsa’s valiantly trying to keep her eyes from straying below Anna’s face, and a little thrill shoots up her spine at this knowledge.

“You said the couch?” Anna asks as casually as possible, trying to regain Elsa’s attention. And no, it doesn’t please her knowing she can make Elsa react like this. Not at all.

Elsa nods tightly, working her jaw like she’s going to say something but then chooses instead to stay silent.

Anna walks briskly over to the couch, pretending she’s not uncomfortable with being half-naked around Elsa. She fans the towel out across the cushions so she won’t get any blood on it before laying down on top of it. If the mood was completely different, she’d make a joke about having Elsa ‘draw her like one of her French girls’, but now is _definitely_ not the time to do so.

Instead, her eyes follow Elsa as the woman comes over and kneels on the floor in front of the couch. She’s close enough for Anna to see every individual freckle dusting her cheekbones and the bridge of her nose, for her to smell the mint shampoo Elsa uses. It’s obvious Elsa is also aware of their proximity—there’s a moment where she just stares at Anna’s lips for a little too long. Anna’s no psychic, but she’s pretty sure she knows _exactly_ what Elsa’s thinking.

Anna clears her throat, hoping to recapture Elsa’s attention before one of them does something impulsive. The sound registers and Elsa gives a little jolt, blinking slowly as if coming out of a daydream. When she focuses back on Anna—and not her lips—a flicker of guilt crosses her face before it’s quickly smothered.

The expression isn’t lost on Anna, and she gives the other woman an encouraging smile despite the sinking feeling in her chest. “ _She adores you_ ,” she remembers Kristoff saying, “ _Hell, she probably liked you before you even knew she existed_.”

Despite thinking her feelings are one-sided, and despite the physical exertion this will cost her, Elsa didn’t hesitate to offer up her powers for Anna’s injuries. She’s selfless to an almost painful degree, and Anna has to bite her lip to keep from admitting something she shouldn’t.

“I’m going to put my hands on you now. Try to relax,” Elsa finally says, her own voice low and a little shaky.

Anna watches as Elsa’s hands descend towards her shoulder. “No problem,” she breathes. “I’m super relaxed. Cool as a cucumber.”

That breaks some of the tension between them, and Elsa cracks a small smile.

Anna startles at the sudden touch of cool fingers against her bare skin, and she exhales slowly. Elsa’s fingers trace back and forth along the sides of the cuts. “Do they hurt?” she asks softly.

“I’ve had worse,” Anna sheepishly admits. This whole situation is embarassing, especially considering that even a teenager could take on a Cat Sith without getting hurt.

But the answer doesn’t make Elsa relax—she sighs in exasperation, and Anna cranes her neck to get a better look at her. Elsa withholds whatever she’s thinking and instead narrows her focus on what her hands are doing. One of them slides around to Anna’s back while the other stays across her collarbone, palms now splayed out against the cuts.

And oh god, this feels way better than it should.

Soon there’s a cold, pulsating sensation coming from Elsa’s hands, winding its way into her wounds and giving her something besides just _touch_ to focus on. Her eyes involuntarily slip shut as the cold works its way into her shoulder and chest. “Hey,” she murmurs after a minute, lulled by the pleasant feeling, “I’m sorry for how I’ve been acting this last week. It was shitty of me.”

She cracks an eye open when she hears Elsa respond, “There’s nothing to apologize for. I know it can be...hard...to open up like you did. But I am glad you’re talking to me again.” She emphasizes her last words with a soft smile.

“Speaking of talking, well, sort of…” Anna not-so-smoothly transitions the topic of conversation, “Kristoff wanted to do something to celebrate for your first lesson with Jack. It’ll probably be pretty fun, whatever it is.”

Above her, Elsa is silent as she considers the offer. “That’s nice of him,” she eventually says. “I think that sounds like a good idea.”

Anna smiles in relief. “Great! I’ll let him know. It won’t be anything crazy—probably just a few drinks over dinner or something. He’s not one to plan anything extravagant—”

Anna stops talking when the cold—which had been only at the _surface_ of her body—begins to make its way deeper, heading to the center of her chest. When she looks down, she sees that the inflammation around the cuts is already lightening from angry red to pale pink. The cuts themselves seem to be shrinking, but Anna shifts in agitation.

The cold finally feels like it’s reaching her heart, and Anna can’t take it anymore—she recoils from Elsa’s touch, grabbing one of her wrists and holding it away from her. “That’s good, thanks,” she says through gritted teeth. Her heart is racing and something just _doesn’t feel right_.

Elsa immediately takes her other hand off Anna but otherwise remains close. “Are you okay?” she questions her, brow furrowing. When Anna releases her wrist, Elsa anxiously clasps her hands together on her lap. “Did I do something?”

“N-no, I don’t think it was you,” Anna manages to say, moving until she’s sitting upright, legs still stretch across the length of the couch. “I’ve been feeling a little off lately, I don’t know why.” Whatever this cold is that keeps invading her life, it’s only getting worse. She pushes away the worrying thought for later, not wanting to deal with it now.

Elsa nods like she doesn’t quite believe her, and the slight frown on her lips supports this. “Is there anything I can get you?”

Anna, trying to relax the other woman before she accidentally makes it snow, offers her a wry smile. “A shirt would be nice.”

“O-oh!” Elsa blushes prettily, eyes once again running up and down Anna’s torso before quickly looking away. “I’ll be right back.”

She’s up and heading towards her room even as Anna calls out, “That was a joke! I have plenty of shirts!”

The next thing she knows, a soft gray shirt is soaring through the air and landing on her head. A surprised giggle escapes Elsa as Anna grumbles and puts her limbs through the appropriate sleeves with a little more force than strictly necessary.

When she looks down, she sees a giant snowman design with the words ‘ _Welcome to AU, Snowflake_!’ emblazoned above it. She raises her head towards Elsa, an eyebrow arching in confusion. “Thanks?”

There’s still the remnants of a smile on Elsa’s lips when she explains, “When I started university, I was really nervous. Nervous about classes and people and especially my powers...but Rapunzel helped me through it. She’s known about my powers since we were little, and made me this shirt to sort of help me relax. It’s my favorite sleep shirt and since it makes me feel better, I thought it might do the same for you.”

Anna’s throat feels like it’s tightening and she swallows hard. “That’s really thoughtful of you,” she says, genuinely touched. “I promise I won’t make a mess of it.”

When Anna tucks herself into bed twenty minutes later, she can’t help but snuggle into the shirt. While she and Elsa both use the same laundry detergent, there’s still a light scent to it that is distinctively _Elsa_. It’s the sharp, cold air of winter, it’s Earl Grey tea leaves, and it’s the smell of books old and new.

It’s almost like Elsa is sleeping beside her once again.

* * *

The bar is Kristoff’s idea, of course. Anna tried to talk him out of using Miller’s Ale House as a venue for celebration. The place itself was a fun place to catch some drinks, but she didn’t think it was really Elsa’s scene.

 _\- Trust me ;)_ was the only text Kristoff gave her before he started suggesting times to meet there. Anna anticipated it would be pretty crowded tonight given the fact he wanted to go on a football Sunday, and Elsa would probably be reluctant to go if that’s the case.

But when she runs the idea by Elsa the morning after their healing session, she’s surprised with how little resistance she meets.

“That could be fun,” Elsa says as she finishes brewing some tea. “I’ve never been to a bar during a game.”

“Have you been to a bar at all?” Anna points out, thinking it to be a reasonable question.

Elsa rolls her eyes. “I’m not that sheltered. In fact, I can probably hold my alcohol quite well if need be.”

“That’s good to hear,” Anna says with a mischievous grin. “I figured you would be stumbling around town and I’d find you swinging from the top of some clock tower.” Having missed out on joking around with Elsa this last week, she’s determined to make up for lost time.

Apparently, Elsa feels the same way. “Actually, I’m pretty sure that would be you. I remember a certain someone convinced they were winning a game when their controller wasn’t even plugged in.” She takes a sip of tea for dramatic effect, looking like the picture of sophisticated grace.

“Touche,” Anna concedes, “and also why I’m volunteering to be the designated driver. I wanna see if you can get white girl wasted!” The real reason is maybe because she’s not ready to touch alcohol yet after the akaname incident, but seeing a drunk Elsa would certainly be a bonus.

Elsa nearly chokes on the liquid in her mouth, a hand coming up to dab at any droplets that might have escaped. “I don’t think that’s possible,” she says after she composes herself once more. “Maybe fae have a high alcohol tolerance.”

Anna narrows her eyes challengingly. “We’ll see about that.”

* * *

As she rightly predicted, Miller’s Ale House is packed when they arrive hours later. Anna has to stand on her tiptoes in an attempt to see over the crowd of people and find Kristoff.

Despite her talk earlier, it’s clear Elsa is at least a little nervous about coming to the bar. Whenever someone brushes a little too close or gives her a lingering stare, she glares at them, a tense set to her shoulders. It’s almost like the old, anti-social version of her has temporarily resurfaced.

Kristoff eventually flags them down from the other side of the room, having secured a few seats close to the bar. “This is great, right?” he yells in greeting, slightly flushed cheeks indicating that he’s probably had a couple drinks already.

“Sure, sure,” Anna nods along, taking the seat between him and Elsa. She claps her hands together and glances at her roommate. “What should we start her off with?”

“Wells!” Kristoff announces, pounding the lacquered wood of the bar for emphasis. “All the well drinks this place has!”

Anna doesn’t even try to smother her amused grin as she turns to Elsa. “What do you think? They certainly taste better than most of the beers here.” They were cheaper too, which was a plus since she and Kristoff had decided to pay for Elsa’s drinks.

Elsa shifts on the barstool, in obvious discomfort. “I’m not sure…” She flinches slightly as the crowd erupts into cheering for the team on the tv screens.

“How about a screwdriver?” Anna suggests, wanting her to feel at ease. “It’s just orange juice and some vodka.”

“That’s fine,” Elsa nods tersely, eyes darting around from the tv to the other patrons.

Anna manages to make eye contact with the bartender and orders the drink, handing over their IDs for inspection. “We can leave in a bit if you’re not enjoying yourself,” Anna says once the man slides over Elsa’s drink. “There’s an all-night place not too far from here that has kickass tacos.”

Elsa unexpectedly downs her drink in two gulps and a slow smile comes to her face. “I think I’ll be fine.” She taps her glass thoughtfully. “I was nervous when you took me to the archery range, but I ended up having a lot of fun. I’d like to give this place a chance too.”

“If you say so,” Anna says with a relieved smile. “Feel free to get whatever, the sky's the limit! Or well, thirty-dollars, whichever comes first.”

Kristoff hoots next to her, following along with the game. “Man, Arendelle is kicking ass! We’re going to the championships this year, mark my words.”

Anna scrunches her face in confusion. “You don’t even follow football. Actually, I’m pretty sure you hate it. How many drinks have you had?”

He brushes her question away with a dismissive hand wave. “The bartender said I had to drink if I wanted to sit at the bar. I’ve had like...four of whatever this is,” he picks up the dark bottle in front of him, “and then someone bought birthday shots for everyone and I had one of those.”

“You lush,” Anna teases him, rolling her eyes affectionately. On her other side, Elsa tentatively waves to the bartender to order another drink. In a lower voice she adds, “Don’t say anything weird to Elsa tonight, no matter how drunk you get, okay?”

The comment invites a snort from him. “Like what, that I’ve been her secret wingman for the past couple of months and she hasn’t even noticed? That I really think you should have kissed her like a hundred times by now? Or that you two would have the cutest babies in existence? I mean, if the technology was available—”

“What the hell?!” Anna hisses, clapping a hand over his mouth. Thank god Elsa isn’t sitting right next to him, or this would be all kinds of horrible. “That’s exactly what I asked you not to say!”

Kristoff leans away from her hand with a rueful smile. “Sorry, had to get it out of my system. I should be good for the rest of the night.”

Anna glowers at him. “Make sure you are.”

Once her heart rate is under control, she turns back to Elsa. “How’s your drink?” This one is is light brown, looking suspiciously like a Long Island Iced Tea.

Elsa looks up at her from the glass, grinning around her straw. The sight is possibly one of the cutest things she’s ever seen. “This is really good. Are you sure you don’t want any?” She edges her drink towards Anna invitingly.

“I, umm…” As cheesy as it was to think about, this would totally count as an indirect kiss, right? “I guess a little would be fine.” She leans down and takes a quick sip, and yep; this is definitely a Long Island.

Elsa looks pleased as punch, retrieving her glass back and taking another swallow. Anna can’t help but notice how she licks her lips afterwards, and she wonders if Elsa is also thinking of indirect kisses.

“Do you know anything about football?” Elsa asks her after the other patrons start booing over a decision the referees made.

“Oh, definitely,” Anna says excitedly before launching into a horribly inaccurate account of the Arendelle Wolves football franchise. There’s mentions of linebackers created in laboratories, alien abductions, and a conspiracy that the team owner is part vampire.

Elsa nods along the whole time, leaning in close to hear her over the noise. By the time Anna is finished, she’s downed another two drinks. All she can say after Anna concludes her tale is, “I want to disagree with you about a few of those things, but I don’t know enough about football to dispute you.”

“And therefore I’m right!” Anna crows, throwing her hands up in victory just as the Wolves score their fourth touchdown.

The rest of the night goes on smoothly, with the Wolves pushing back against their opponent and Elsa becoming more and more relaxed. By the time the fourth quarter of the game rolls around, all three of them are fully invested in its outcome, cheering and booing with everyone else.

The atmosphere in the bar becomes downright ecstatic when the team wins, and Kristoff elbows Anna hard enough to send her into Elsa for an awkward, congratulatory hug. Elsa stiffens for only a second before her arms loop around Anna’s waist and she squeezes her gently. When they separate, both of them are red in the face.

Anna averts her gaze from Elsa, staring down the length of the bar when someone catches her eye. “Kristoff, I think there’s a girl checking you out over there.”

“Yeah right,” Kristoff laughs without even looking in the direction Anna subtly points towards.

“No, I’m serious!” she insists. The girl in question is really cute—pale with chestnut hair and a small, button nose. She seems to be shooting shy looks in their direction every now and then, and Anna’s pretty sure they’re meant for Kristoff.

Anna leans towards him, whispering, “Let’s just see who the better wingman is.”

“Wait, where are you going?” he protests as she stands up and begins weaving her way through the crowd. She briefly wonders if it’s a good idea to leave them alone, but hopefully Kristoff’s too busy watching her to spill any secrets to Elsa.

Approaching the bar, Anna sidles up next to the girl and leans her elbows against the bar. “Hi, I’m Anna!” she greets her with a smile.

The girl nearly jumps in her seat, taken aback by Anna’s very sudden introduction. “Jane. Can I help you?” she replies curiously, the words carried along by a hint of an English accent.

“To be perfectly honest, I saw that you might have been admiring my friend,” Anna answers glibly, pointing out Kristoff. He’s staring at her with wide eyes, mouth dropped open slightly. When he notices them looking at him, he quickly takes a sip of his beer and averts his eyes towards the ceiling.

Jane smiles shyly. “Yes, he’s quite cute.”

_Yes! So far, so good._

“He really is,” Anna agrees fondly. When Jane gives her a questioning look, she’s quick to add, “I’ve been his friend since we were in diapers; he’s practically my brother. And look!” Anna whips out her phone and quickly pulls up some photos. “He has this dog, Sven, who is the best dog in the world.” She stops on a picture Kristoff sent her just last week, which has him and Sven pressed cheek to cheek, both of them sticking their tongues out at the camera.

Girls are suckers for dogs, right? That should be an easy enough ‘in’, especially since Kristoff could talk about Sven for hours.

“That is _adorable_ ,” Jane gushes, coming closer to take a better look at the photo. “Oh, I love dogs! I’m actually here for veterinary school.”

“I can bring him over here and introduce you two,” Anna suggests, hoping she’s not pushing her luck. “He’s really a great guy.”

Jane hesitates for a moment before throwing back the rest of her drink. “Sure,” she exclaims, grinning. “Why not!”

Anna beams at her. “Great! I’ll be right back.” _Holy shit that actually worked._

When she returns, both Elsa and Kristoff are looking at her like she’s crazy. “What?” she says defensively, “I’m being an awesome wingman. Kristoff: she thinks you’re cute, is going to vet school, and is already in love with Sven.”

He gapes at her.

“I, what...really?” Interest shines in his eyes and he stands up, looking only a little wobbly. But the alcohol might help him for once, as it makes him more outgoing than he usually is. “You’re the best wingman in the world!” he declares, taking a fistful of her shirt and dragging her towards him. “The best,” he whispers, nodding to himself.

Okay, so maybe he’s had more to drink than she realized. But it’s too late to back out now, right? Anna peels his hand off of her. “Right...so let’s go say ‘hi’ to her.” She directs her next words to Elsa, who’s watching them with an amused smile. “I’ll be back in a second.”

Kristoff eagerly follows her through the crowds and over to Jane. She smiles expectantly at him, and he turns red to the tips of his ears. Anna discreetly elbows him in the ribs and he jolts forward, bracing his forearms against the bar. “So…” he coughs before giving her a twitchy smile, “I’m Kristoff. Umm...can I get you another drink?”

Anna slowly backs away from them when she hears Jane shyly accepts his offer and the two start talking about Sven. She fights off a huge, satisfied smile as she makes her way back to Elsa. Kristoff deserves some happiness of his own and even if nothing goes on beyond tonight with Jane, she hopes he has a good time.

Right when she’s in sight of Elsa, she bumps into someone when they take a backwards step into her path. The apology on her lips dies instantly when she sees who it is.

“Anna, fancy seeing you here,” Hans greets her, drink in hand. He’s looking good as usual, wearing a blue collared shirt and neatly-pressed pants. Anna wonders if she can get away with spilling something on them.

“Hans,” she mutters in return. Remembering how their last encounter turned out, she continues on towards Elsa instead of staying to verbally spar with him like she usually would.

Unfortunately, it seems like old habits die hard with him.

“I see you’ve finally cut the cord with Halstein over there,” he remarks casually, pointing his glass towards Kristoff and Jane. “It’s about time he started talking to girls other than you—I was beginning to think he didn’t have any balls.”

Anna grits her teeth and keeps her eyes forward, refusing to give in. “I’m not fighting with you tonight. Spare your comments for someone who actually cares.” _Be the bigger person, be the bigger person…_

To her dismay, Hans is still with her when she rejoins Elsa, and he brightens upon seeing her. “Oh, you again. You’re looking lovely.”

Elsa glowers at him in response and Anna places a calming hand on her arm. “Hans was just leaving,” she tells her, turning slightly so her back is to him.

If he managed to get Elsa wound up while she had alcohol in her, the end result probably wouldn’t be pretty. She’s doing him a favor by ignoring him, really. Especially since she would want nothing more than to punch him square in the jaw or watch Elsa freeze him solid.

But Hans has never been one to give up easily, especially if he’s been drinking. “Is this the single, bitter women part of the bar?” he wonders, making a show of looking around their seating area. “If so, I can understand why you’re sitting here, Anna. It’s not like any guys here would have an interest in you.”

Anna can’t help but laugh—as cutting as he wanted that remark to be, she honestly doesn’t give one shit about what anyone here thinks of her besides Elsa and Kristoff. It’s a pretty nice feeling; there was a time immediately after their breakup where she probably would have had tears in her eyes at that.

Irritated that his comment isn’t getting under her skin like it should be, Hans opens his mouth to try again. “You think I’m joking, but—”

Elsa stands up unexpectedly, cutting in between her and Hans. “She doesn’t care if any of these guys are interested in her,” she says firmly. “She doesn’t need to be, because she’s with me.”

Anna’s smile drops right off her face as she and Hans both stare at her incredulously. Elsa looks completely calm despite the faint pink now coloring her cheekbones. She takes Anna’s hand and gives it an encouraging squeeze.

 _What is she doing?_ Anna thinks, completely blindsided by this turn of events. _What the hell is she doing?_

Elsa quietly continues, “Anna is a better person than you could ever hope to be. Not a day goes by that I’m not thankful for knowing her.” She scowls at Hans contemptuously. “She’s told me all about you, about what you did. I can’t think of anyone here who deserves to be more miserable than you.”

There’s a shocked silence as Hans processes her words, unable to come back with a snappy retort. But Elsa isn’t finished, not quite. She looks directly at Anna for the first time since Hans has come over, and takes a step into Anna’s personal space, their fronts almost close enough to brush.

“E-Elsa…?” Anna hesitantly whispers, but the other woman gives a minute shake of her head and pulls Anna closer with her free hand.

She lets out a surprised squeak but manages to catch the next words Elsa says under her breath, “Trust me.”

Her hand releases Anna’s only to come up and cradle the side of her face not visible to Hans. Her fingers are cool as they trail across her cheek, stopping when her thumb is on the corner of Anna’s lips.

Anna feels like one of those ridiculous cartoons she watched as a kid—her heart feels like it’s beating out of her chest and there must be steam floating around her head with how hot she feels. _Trust me_ , Elsa had said, but she’s finding that hard to do right now. This isn’t how their first kiss should be—not in front of her ex-boyfriend in a loud, overcrowded bar. Not to prove some non-existent point to him.

But she can’t pull away even as Elsa’s lips descend towards hers. Even as Elsa’s too-blue eyes are so close to her own before they flutter shut, even as she feels warm breath against her skin. Her eyes slip closed when she feels a pressure against her lips, only to stiffen in surprise.

The pressure she feels...it’s not Elsa’s lips, but her thumb. The digit had moved smoothly across her mouth just as Elsa leaned in, acting as a buffer between them and—from Hans’ viewpoint— making it look like they were really kissing.

Anna forces herself to keep her eyes shut and her fists clench against her legs, not sure if she’s disappointed or relieved that this isn’t the real thing. Elsa drops her hand from Anna’s cheek and leans back a few moments later, sparing Anna from having to think about this all right now. Elsa looks almost apologetic when she opens her eyes, but then she shifts her gaze to Hans, Anna following her lead.

Hans is staring intently at them, eyebrows up to his hairline. “Huh...you’ve given up on guys then?” he asks Anna, sounding genuinely curious. He runs his eyes down Elsa’s form in consideration. “I suppose you could’ve done worse.”

Neither him nor Anna see the punch that makes him stumble backwards.

Hans touches his reddening jaw, stunned. Elsa’s fist is still raised, ready to hit him again. “Don’t talk to either of us again. _Ever_.”

“Hey…” Anna murmurs, gently taking ahold of the fist and lowering it. Thankfully, most of the people in the bar are too preoccupied to notice what happened, but a few are looking warily in their direction. Hans is staying a safe distance away from them, hand still at his face and silent for once.“Let’s get out of here, alright?”

Elsa nods numbly, allowing Anna to steer her towards the exit. Along the way, she finds Kristoff and Jane talking animatedly to one another. She waves over Jane’s shoulder to get his attention, pointing towards the door as a ‘we’re leaving’ sign. Kristoff nods in their general direction, looking a little more alert than before. Anna makes a mental note to text him and see if he needs someone to take him home if he’s too far gone to drive himself.

The frigid air outside hits them immediately, and for a moment Anna almost regrets leaving the warmth of the bar. Elsa takes her hand back and instantly puts some distance between them. “I am so, so sorry, Anna,” she says shakily. The guilt she feels is clear in the way she wraps her arms around her middle, how she won’t pick her eyes up from the icy ground.

Anna grimaces at the sight but stops herself from moving closer to her—from the looks of it, Elsa doesn’t want to be touched right now. “For punching Hans or…” she trails off, not wanting to say the words ‘kissing me’ to Elsa.

Elsa swallows hard. “Both. But I...I feel worse about what I did to you.” When she looks back up at Anna, her eyes are bright with anger. “He kept saying those _things_ and he wasn’t going to stop, Anna. I thought if I just pretended...if he thought we were…” She squeezes her eyes shut. “It was stupid of me. I-I think I probably drank too much and wasn’t thinking right.” Her last words don’t ring true to either of them—Elsa didn’t seem the slightest bit tipsy even after all the drinks she consumed.

“Hey,” Anna takes a cautious step towards her, “There’s nothing to apologize for. I’m not mad at you, not at all. How could I be?” She makes sure she has Elsa’s attention when she grins. “Besides, didn’t you say you’d punch Hans the next time you saw him?”

Elsa gives her a wobbly smile in return, still troubled. “But what about the kiss—”

Anna vehemently shakes her head. “I don’t care about that.”

She realizes how that sounds when a flicker of hurt goes through Elsa.

“I meant that it didn’t bother me,” she quickly amends, “Like I said, you don't need to apologize. It’s fine.” The words are entirely for Elsa’s benefit. The not-kiss certainly _did_ bother her, but for entirely different reasons than Elsa thinks.

She sighs heavily, warm breath causing the air around her to crystallize. Thinking about all of this is going to give her a headache. “We should head back home.”

“What about Kristoff?” Elsa asks, nodding towards the bar. “Do you think he’ll be okay to drive?”

“I’ll ask him,” Anna responds, whipping her phone out and shooting him a text. She doesn’t want to interrupt him and Jane by marching back inside. Besides, Hans is still in there and there is no way she wants to see him right now. Thankfully Kristoff sends her a text less than a minute later.

_-It’s cool, I’m in good hands_

Anna raises an eyebrow, not sure how she should take that comment. But whatever, as long as he gets home safely...

“He’ll be fine,” she relays to Elsa as she begins walking towards her car. “Let’s head home, alright?”

The ride back to their apartment is completely silent except for the sound of the car’s wiper blades and her fingers tapping nervously against the steering wheel. And even though she’s trying to focus on the road in front of her, she can’t help but notice Elsa staring at her.

It’s a thoughtful stare, and Anna can only wonder what she’s thinking. Is it about the kiss? How did it make Elsa feel, to do something like that for Anna’s sake? She could have taken advantage of the situation, really kissed her in front of Hans and made excuses for her actions. But she didn’t—she sacrificed her own feelings for Anna to stop Hans from bothering her.

Anna meant what she said; she couldn’t possibly be angry at her for doing such a thing.

Even so, Elsa’s stare has her on edge. The weight behind it is heavy with _something_ , but she can’t fully focus on it while she’s driving. She can only hope that she can hold herself together for just a little longer.

* * *

Coming back to the apartment offers Anna no relief. It’s only her and Elsa in a quiet, enclosed space with no real distractions. Her stomach feels like it’s in knots and Elsa certainly isn’t helping matters—when she ventures into the kitchen to find a distraction, Elsa accompanies her.

Feeling self-conscious, Anna reaches into a cupboard for a cup. “Do you umm...want any water? It might be a good idea for…” she trails off, just now noticing Elsa’s hand now that it’s under proper lighting. Pushing away her discomfort, she walks over to where Elsa is sitting at the table. “How’s your hand doing?”

“Oh,” Elsa begins, flexing the hand in thought. “I think I’m fine. I mean I didn’t really hit him all that—”

She abruptly stops talking when Anna reaches for her hand and brushes her thumb across her palm. She carefully turns it over, inspecting Elsa’s fingers and knuckles with gentle, probing touches. The damage didn’t seem to be too bad—at worst her hand could have been broken. But still…

“Does it hurt?” she asks in concern, looking back up at Elsa’s face.

Elsa’s head is tilted slightly, lower lip held firmly between her teeth. A light flush that has nothing to do with the cold blossoms across her cheeks as she opens her eyes and meets Anna’s. Anna wants to avert her gaze, to let go of Elsa’s hand and pretend nothing happened. And yet she just _can’t_.

So she talks instead. “Next time you punch someone, make sure your thumb isn't tucked inside your hand; keep it next to your index finger. And try to make contact using your first two knuckles.” She brings Elsa’s hand closer again, studying it intently. “You definitely didn’t do too bad, though.”

Her body moves before she can stop herself, and she leans down to place an absentminded kiss over the reddened knuckles. It’s quick; barely even a touch of lips against cool skin. But Anna jumps back the moment after it happens, eyes going wide in realization of what she just did. “I am so sorry!” she exclaims, wondering if she somehow ingested alcohol tonight to make such a stupid decision. “That was weird wasn’t? That was so weird of me, I’m really sorry. We need to—I mean, I should go to bed soon. It’s not all that late but maybe I should just...I really am sorry— ”

“Anna.”

Her name crossing Elsa’s lips is enough for her to stop babbling. Elsa is gazing at her with so much open affection that even _she_ can’t mistake it for something else. But then a bolt of nervousness seems to run through Elsa and she straightens her shoulders. “Th-there’s something I need to tell you,” she begins, strangely serious. She hesitantly squeezes Anna’s hand before letting it go. “It’s something I’ve been wanting to say for a long time now, actually.”

_Oh shit._

Anna thinks she knows _exactly_ where this is going and _no_ , she’s not ready for this, not at all.

Crossing her arms over her chest, Elsa nervously continues, “It’s not as important as...you know, the ice stuff. But in a way, it’s kind of...more important?”

“We really should go to sleep,” Anna says weakly, taking a step backwards. “It can wait, right?”

“N-no, I don’t think it can,” Elsa replies as she uncrosses her arms, standing up and moving towards Anna. “I don’t want to wait anymore.” She takes another step forward.

Anna’s hips bump into a counter, halting her progress and allowing Elsa to come closer. She stops less than a foot away, eyes locking intently on Anna’s own. There’s still nervousness there, but something else...something that looks suspiciously like _hope_. “Can…” Elsa swallows hard, placing an unsteady hand on the counter next to Anna. “Can I kiss you? For real this time?”

Anna sucks in a ragged breath, feeling like she’s about to hyperventilate. “Elsa…” She puts a hand on her shoulder, meaning to gently push her back so there could be some space between them.

Instead, her hand tightens on the soft material of Elsa’s shirt and she pulls Elsa towards her.

Their mouths meet in a clash of teeth and a bumping of noses, but Elsa places a trembling hand on Anna’s cheek and tilts her own head before kissing her again. Everything is still, and there’s nothing else in the world but the soft pressure of Elsa’s lips against her own.

Elsa presses closer, a warm line against Anna’s body, her hands sliding down Anna’s sides until they reach her hips and grip at them tightly. Anna arches at the touch, one of her own hands coming up to Elsa’s braid and threading her fingers through the fine strands.

They break for air, but Elsa wastes no time pressing her lips to the corner of Anna’s mouth, her cheek, across her jaw. One insistent, open-mouthed kiss after another, and Anna is already flushed and panting even as she cranes her neck up to give Elsa more access.

But Elsa takes a step back, causing Anna to open her eyes in confusion. Not even a moment later, she feels hands against the back of her thighs and she’s lifted up onto the countertop, Elsa bracketed between her legs.

She moves back to Anna’s neck without missing a beat, nipping and sucking her way down towards the collar of her shirt. There’s a loud _thump_ as Anna’s head hits one of the upper cabinets, but neither of them can be bothered to care. When her tongue presses against the sensitive skin on the side of her neck, Anna whimpers and feels more than hears Elsa’s answering moan. Cool hands slip under Anna’s shirt, skimming across the skin of her stomach and ribs, pulling her in even closer.

Her legs tighten around Elsa, and she drags her away from her neck to bring their lips back together. The kiss is more heated this time, Elsa’s tongue brushing between Anna’s lips and slipping into her mouth to taste her. There’s another moan, but Anna can’t tell which of them uttered it. Elsa’s tongue meets Anna’s, causing a delightful shiver to course through her.

She finally manages to release Elsa’s hair from the confines of its braid, causing a shower of white-gold to fall around her hands and down Elsa’s shoulders. Her fingers glide through silky strands and clutch at the back of Elsa’s shirt when she feels the slightest hint of teeth against her lower lip. She returns the favor, licking into Elsa’s mouth and locking her ankles behind Elsa’s back to keep her in place.

“Ahh... _Anna_.”

It’s said as a reverent rush of breath against Anna’s lips, a whisper of bare adoration. Anna’s eyes open at the sound and she stiffens even as Elsa keeps kissing her.

This isn’t...this isn’t supposed to happen. They’re supposed to stay _friends_ , Anna was supposed to let Elsa down gently and act as if the pretend-kiss from the bar didn’t mean anything. It was the only way she could think of not getting hurt again.

Anna places a hand against Elsa’s collarbone and breaks their kiss, trying to catch her breath. “W-wait,” she gasps. “We can’t…”

Elsa yanks her hands away as if Anna’s skin is on fire, and takes a step back. Her cheeks are flushed and her lips glistening. “What’s wrong?” she asks, worry and doubt already beginning to seep back into her.

“I just…” Anna shakes her head, wiping at the slick skin of her neck. “I think maybe you had too much to drink.” _I’m such a coward._

Elsa’s eyes widen. “No, that’s not why...I’m not drunk, Anna,” she whispers.

Anna slides off the counter, feeling unsteady as her feet hit the ground. “We shouldn’t have—I...we should probably get some sleep. I know I’m tired, and you probably are too.” Anna starts to edge out of the kitchen, unable to meet Elsa’s eyes. “You should have some water before you go to bed. Hangovers are the worst, and you definitely don’t want one—”

“Anna, please—”

“We can...we can talk tomorrow, if you want,” Anna rambles, directing her words towards the floor. “Once we’re feeling more like ourselves, I mean.”

Her eyes flick up to Elsa, who hasn’t moved an inch. She’s completely still, staring at Anna with tear-bright eyes, a hand against her mouth.

Anna’s heart lurches at the sight, but it’s better this way, _it is_. It’s not too late for them to go back to the way things were, for them to be nothing but friends. Elsa’s feelings are bound to fade in time, and she’ll find someone more deserving of her attention, her _love_. Anna’s just speeding the process along, for her sake and for Elsa’s.

But as she closes the door to her room, leaving a stunned Elsa in the kitchen, she finds that her throat is tight and her eyes are wet. She slides down against the door, drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her head against them. She squeezes her eyes shut and muffles a sob against the back of her hand.

 _It has to be this way. It_ has _to be._

But that doesn’t stop Anna from feeling like she’s ripping both their hearts out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jeez, all you guys want are some Elsanna kisses. Well, you got 'em, so I hope you're happy! The chapter title is from the Chvrches song 'We Sink', which suits this chapter quite well. Aaand a big thanks to my beta, The Wandering Quill who keeps my chapters looking pretty. Thanks for reading and feel free to vent at me :)


	11. Under the Tide

There's a time and a place for wallowing in misery of your own creation—Anna has decided  _now_  and  _her bed_  suit her needs. She hasn't slept at all since last night, and she can practically feel the dark circles forming under her eyes.

Kristoff's words, which have been repeating on an endless loop, echo through her mind once more: " _This is an instance where a kiss would_ literally _make everything better_."

If she wasn't such a fuckup, maybe that would be true.

As it is, she's...scared.

Scared because she's in the process of ruining one of the only good things in her life and she doesn't know how to stop herself. Every decision she's made since realizing Elsa's feelings for her has been wrong, right up to being the one to initiate that—

( _incredible, heart-stopping, beautiful_ )

—stupid kiss.

Even worse, she managed to hurt Elsa because of how poorly she acted afterwards. At this point, she can't help but ask herself what harm there would be in being  _with_  Elsa. The thought is almost immediately dashed; not because she doesn't want it, but because she wants it  _too_  much.

She made that mistake before when she opened up to Hans. She was so damn  _eager_  to fall in love, wasn't she? She opened herself up to him so quickly, so earnestly, that it's no wonder he lashed out.

Anna grips her covers tightly. She shouldn't be blaming herself for his actions—her mom always made excuses for her father whenever he came home late, reeking of alcohol and perfume. She remembers hearing their hushed arguments, feeling sick to her stomach. If she shouldered the blame for Hans' infidelity, who's to say she won't make the same mistakes as her mom?

But she also knows that Kristoff was right the other night: Elsa is nothing like Hans. She clearly cares about Anna—probably more than she should—and she most likely wants a long-lasting relationship. Anna has no idea what the other woman sees in her—she's basically a trainwreck of a human being. Elsa's too good for her, truth be told; she should be with someone who knows what a functional relationship looks like.

She growls in frustration, clutching her head in her hands.

Around and around.

That's all she's doing right now; going in circles, completing mental gymnastics to find reasons why she can't be with Elsa even though they both  _clearly_ want each other. It's so fucking  _idiotic_ —

A knock on the door startles her out of her frustrating thoughts. "Anna?" Elsa's voice is timid, hesitant.

Anna gulps hard, her hands back gripping at her covers. "Y-yeah?" she calls back, not moving an inch.

She sees Elsa's shadow under the door, shifting from side to side. "I...I have a training session with Jack now; he's picking me up," Elsa says quietly. There's a slight pause before she continues, "But when I get back, we...we should talk."

Silence stretches between them, thin and painful, as Elsa waits for an answer. But Anna isn't ready to face this; isn't ready to try and justify her stupid,  _stupid_  actions from last night.

She hears a light sound against the door, and imagines Elsa placing her palm on the wood. "I really want to talk to you," Elsa whispers, and Anna's resolve wavers at the vulnerability in her words. "After I saw you in the forest, we both agreed there shouldn't be any more secrets between us. And I haven't been honest about my...feelings...towards you."

Anna squeezes her eyes shut.  _That makes two of us_.

"I'll be back in a couple hours," Elsa continues, voice trembling slightly. "Please don't be mad at me."

Elsa's shadow disappears and Anna hears the front door open.

"W-wait!" Anna scrambles out of the comforter she's cocooned herself in, falling to the floor with a muted  _umph_. A fierce, pins-and-needles sensation begins to flow from her knees down to her feet, keeping her from standing properly. "Shit," she hisses when she falls down again, and she hurriedly rubs her hands over her calves to regain some feeling in them.

It takes nearly a whole minute before she's able to hobble towards the door and throw it open. "I'm not mad at you, Elsa! I swear that's the last—"

She stops short when she sees Jack leaning against the wall across from her.

He tilts his head to the side, taking her reaction in. "What's going on here?" he says in lieu of a greeting, raising an eyebrow.

Anna looks to the side, not wanting to answer  _that_  question. Her eyes land on Elsa, and she inhales sharply.

Elsa...doesn't look well. She's holding herself tightly around the middle, as if she'll fall apart if she loosens up. Her eyes are puffy and red-rimmed, and her lips are trembling. Her shoulders shake under Anna's gaze, and she brings her hands up to rub some warmth into her upper arms.

Jack pushes away from the wall. "Are you feeling cold, Elsa?" he asks mildly, though Anna senses tension lurking underneath the words. He's holding himself stiffly, fixing Elsa with a pointed stare.

Elsa's eyes widen and she shakes her head emphatically. "This isn't what you think—"

Jack moves suddenly, lashing out to grab Anna's wrist and pulling her towards the door without another word.

Anna stumbles after him, nearly losing her footing. "What the hell are you doing!" she exclaims, trying to free herself from his iron grip. As he leads her outside, the floor below her transitions to snow and ice, quickly soaking into her socks. "Jack, stop!"

Elsa keeps pace with them, trying to catch Jack's attention. "I swear this isn't what you think! I just get cold sometimes, that's all!" He ignores both of them, though his fingers loosen slightly around Anna's wrist as they head down the stairs. Elsa tries again, "Where are you going?"

"We'll be back later," Jack says curtly, ignoring Elsa's question. "I promise I won't hurt her, if that's what you're worried about."

Anna stares at the back of his head in disbelief, because what the hell has she done to elicit this kind of reaction? Elsa looks worriedly between him and Anna, but stays silent until they get to Jack's car. Anna's socks are now sopping wet and the bottom of her feet are starting to feel tingly.

"I'll see you later," Anna quietly assures Elsa, though she has no idea when she might be back from wherever Jack is taking her. Elsa doesn't look any more relaxed than before, so she softly adds, "Please don't worry."

Elsa offers her a brittle smile. "I'll always worry about you."

Jack finishes unlocking his car and opens the passenger side for Anna. "Get in," he orders, and Anna sees that his eyes are a bright, electric blue. She swallows hard and does as he says, feeling like she's being kidnapped.

Neither Jack nor Anna speak as he starts the car and slowly maneuvers through the apartment complex. A shiver wracks Anna's body, and she's thankful she wore a long-sleeved shirt and sweatpants to bed.

Jack spares her a sideways glance. "I don't have a heater."

"What a fucking surprise," Anna mutters before cupping her hands over her mouth and blowing warm air over them. She's never seen him this serious before, and it's making her nervous. "Can you at least tell me where you're taking me, or should I put on a blindfold?"

"We're going to have a little chat at my place," he says after a moment, keeping his eyes on the road. "Set you straight on a few things."

 _That certainly doesn't sound threatening_. Anna huffs against the window, hoping she won't freeze solid before they arrive at his place.

Fifteen minutes of careful driving later, Jack pulls into a spot near the Midnight. The bar is where Anna usually goes to meet him, but she can't figure out why he'd want to go here now.

"I'm not really feeling like a drink," Anna says acerbically, glowering at him.

Jack ignores her, choosing instead to get out of the car and walk into the building without her. Anna grumbles a few curses before following him, trying to pretend she's not self-conscious about her pajamas-and-bedhead look as she enters the bar.

Instead of heading over to his usual table, Jack strides towards a door behind the bar Anna had never noticed before. He inserts a key into its lock and opens it forcefully, throwing most of his weight against the slab of wood. It groans before finally giving in, and Anna follows him up a narrow flight of stairs.

They end up in a surprisingly airy loft, with dark wood floorboards and a noticeable lack of furniture—besides a mattress situated on the floor near the window, a few chairs, a kitchen table, and a lumpy couch, there wasn't much in the space. Except...

"Holy crap," Anna breathes, temporarily forgetting her annoyance at Jack when she sees the absolutely  _massive_  bookshelf stretching along the length of the loft.

She rushes over to it, taking in how many hundreds of books there are—old, thin books with faded titles and brittle pages. New books with creaseless spines and gilded edges. Books in languages she knows aren't human, and those without any titles at all…

"Don't touch any of those," Jack warns her, and her hands whip down to her sides to avoid temptation.

Elsa would  _love_  this place.

The thought brings Anna back to the real reason she's here, and she reluctantly focuses her attention back on Jack. "Are you going to tell me why you kidnapped me?" Anna asks, an edge to her voice. "Or did you just want to glare at me here instead of in my apartment?"

Jack doesn't seem to appreciate her sarcasm. He tilts his head towards the couch. "Have a seat...please," he adds the last word as an afterthought. Once she sits on the far end of the couch, he pinches the bridge of his nose. "You are giving me such a headache right now."

Anna scoffs in disbelief. "Me? You're the one who's been acting crazy all morning!"

"I suppose my actions might seem strange to you," he acknowledges, and Anna knows it's the closest thing to an apology she'll get from him. "But this is important." He takes a deep breath and locks his eyes on hers. "What happened between you and Elsa?"

The question takes her completely by surprise. "Uhh, what are you talking about?" Anna says dumbly. Does he somehow know about their kiss?

"Well, she looked like shit, for starters," Jack replies, gaze narrowing. "She was obviously upset about something when you came running out of your room. And she was  _shivering_."

He says the last part like it's the most damning of all, and Anna resists the urge to say 'So what?' since that would just make him mad. "Is that supposed to mean something?" she asks instead, trying to be patient with him. After all, he wouldn't be acting like this without a valid reason, right?

He runs a hand through his hair, causing it to stick up every which way. "Shivering—at least amongst ice fae—is a symptom of something...bad."

Bad...he says the word like it's a placeholder for something even worse, like he's trying to lessen the blow of whatever he says next.

Alright, that's a bit worrying but also vague as hell. She can't help but wonder if Jack is jumping to conclusions. "Humans shiver, Jack. We get cold." In fact, she's shivering right now, still trying to acclimate to the loft after their chilly car ride.

"But Elsa—"

Anna waves a knowing hand between them. "Yes, yes, I know. She's not fully human, but you said yourself she probably isn't pure fae either. I know Elsa's gotten cold before. Definitely not as often as me, but she still wears jackets and sweaters. She's not completely immune to the cold like you are."

The words don't seem to please Jack, since he clearly wasn't expecting such a mundane answer to his worry. Still, he doesn't seem entirely convinced. "There's another possibility too, which is why I brought you here in the first place." He gives her a shrewd look. "Something  _did_  happen between you two, didn't it?"

"That's none of your business," Anna mutters, fidgeting in her spot. Jack is the last person she wants to talk about her romantic life with.

"Yeah, it actually is," he replies, unexpectedly sharp. "Because it has to do with being an ice fae. As I'm the one mentoring Elsa and her parents aren't in the picture, her wellbeing falls to me. I'm going to tell you what I told Elsa during our first real meeting, and what you hear will not leave this room, alright?"

Anna nods mutely. For whatever reason, Jack has deemed this information important enough for her—a human—to be privy to.

Jack nods as well, and moves a little closer on the couch to her. "We are... _emotional_...creatures by nature," he says slowly, picking his next words with care, "It's possible for us to die of a broken heart."

There's a beat of silence, and then another.

"Oh…" Anna says uncertainly.

"Yes, 'oh'," Jack replies humorlessly. There's no hint of a smile on his face, no sign that this is some kind of joke gone too far. "Love is our one real weakness, yet we can't keep ourselves away from it. Not just romantic love, mind you. Familial love is almost as important. If those bonds are broken, if the object of our affection rejects us or passes away…" He looks past her with a grimace. "It's almost impossible to move on."

Still not looking at her, he continues, "When a fae experiences a broken heart, their powers begin to turn inwards. It makes them weak, cold, in constant pain. It's...not a good death."

No wonder Jack was so worried. But why would he assume Anna had something to do with Elsa's current state? Unless...

"Wait, do you think  _I_  broke her heart?"

Jack simply stares at her, waiting for the words to sink in.

And oh god, she  _is_  breaking her heart, isn't she? She pushed Elsa away last night, and then dismissed the kiss as a drunken mistake between friends when it clearly meant so much more. She saw how close to tears Elsa was, but closed the door on her anyways. She avoided talking to her this morning until it was too late…

Anna leans forward so her head is between her knees, feeling woozy. "Are you saying Elsa is in danger because of me?" she whispers unsteadily.

"I'm saying it's a possibility. I knew she had feelings for you, but I didn't think it was  _love_." Anna peeks up at Jack in time to see him grimace. "Of course, it's possible I overreacted, saw something that wasn't there. But if I'm  _not_  overreacting," his eyes flash bright for a moment. "I will make sure you don't hurt her."

Anna swallows hard. That's a threat if she's ever heard one. But something clicks inside Anna, and she  _has_  to know if she's right, even if it pisses him off. "Is...is that how Elsa's mom died?" she asks quietly. Elsa said the woman was bedridden for most of her childhood. She said it was almost a  _relief_  when she died because it meant she wasn't in pain any more. Anna wouldn't wish that kind of suffering on her worst enemy, and if that's what she's doing to Elsa...she wouldn't be able to forgive herself.

Jack's jaw clenches, anger swirling in his eyes. But unexpectedly, the anger doesn't seem to be directed at her. "I believe so. When I discussed this with Elsa, she said her mother never spoke about her father like he was dead, leading me to think he's still out here somewhere. Now this is just speculation on my part, but I think whoever her father was…" he scowls viciously, clearly disapproving of the man. "I think he cut ties with her when she became pregnant with Elsa. It was only her love for her daughter that kept her alive for so long."

"Jesus…" Anna rubs at her temple. No wonder Elsa didn't want to tell her about this. "So what...you just don't fall in love with anyone?" she asks in a small voice. How do ice fae feel, knowing their lives aren't fully in their control? How do they open themselves up to love when the consequences can be so high?

But Jack disagrees.

"We can't stop ourselves from falling in love, even with all the potential risks it could incur. It'd be like trying to stop your heart from beating," he says softly, "it's just...part of who we are."

"Have you been in love before?" The words slip from Anna's mouth before she realizes what she's said.

Jack gives her a bitter smile, not seeming surprised by the question. "Yes. It was...entirely unexpected. I mean, she was a  _dentist_  for god's sake," he says, rolling his eyes with gentle exasperation.

"A dentist?" Anna repeats, because she can't even begin to imagine him with someone who takes care of teeth for a living. It was so...ordinary.

Jack clearly feels the same way. "I couldn't think of anything more boring, but..." He shakes his head wonderingly. "It didn't matter. I met her after one of my teeth had gotten knocked out from a sledding accident." His smile grows softer as he continues, "Once she cleaned up all the blood, she kept going on and on about how white my teeth were. 'Like freshly fallen snow', she said."

There's a vulnerability in Jack as he reminisces, and Anna can't bring herself to ask more about this dentist—she was only spoken of in past tense, clearly not in his life anymore. As if sensing Anna's pity, Jack's smile slowly fades. "But I didn't bring you here to talk about Tatiana—" He stops abruptly, eyes widening once he says her name...as if he hasn't spoken it in years. There's a pained expression on his face that he can't hide fast enough. "We're here to talk about you."

"What about me?" Anna asks hesitantly, reminding herself to find out what she can about any dentists with that name later on.

Jack just looks at her, from head to toe, sizing her up. Anna withers under his intense scrutiny. After a few moments, he brings his gaze back to her. "Do you want to be with Elsa?" he asks point blank.

"No," Anna responds immediately, without giving herself time to think.

"You're lying," he says flatly. Just like that, the Jack who had shared a piece of his past with her was gone, returning to the one who dragged her here against her will.

Anna shrugs weakly. "It's complicated."

"It shouldn't be," Jack retorts. "I told you all of this so you could make an informed decision. Elsa has strong feelings for you, and I'm not going to stand by while you hurt her with your indecisiveness. You like her and she likes you; this isn't exactly rocket science."

Anna burns with embarrassment—even Jack, in the limited time he's seen her and Elsa together, has been able to see the feelings they have for each other. "I appreciate how helpful you're trying to be, but I need to figure this out on my own," she says, trying to sound more confident than she feels.

At that, Jack stands up. "We're not friends, Anna," he says coolly. "You're not someone I consider myself close to. But Elsa...she's my kin. I have to look after her. There will most likely be a day she experiences heartbreak; it's almost inevitable. I can help her through that when it comes. For now, I just want her to be happy."

"I want that too," Anna mumbles.

Jack stretches out his hand to her. "Then I'll take you home now."

* * *

For whatever reason, Jack decides to follow Anna up to her apartment. Though maybe that ends up being a good thing—her hands are shaking so much from the cold that she can't unlock the door. After a few pathetic attempts, he plucks the keys from her hands and slots it into the lock for her.

Anna pushes her way inside first, eager to be back into a place that's properly heated. The very first thing she sees is Elsa, who's standing right in front of her. "Shit!" Anna startles, a hand flying to her chest, heart beating spastically.

Since when has the sight of Elsa scared her?

Elsa bites her lip and looks away, and Anna wonders if she's thinking something similar. Anna smiles tremulously at her, willing herself not to act like a horrible person. "Sorry, I wasn't expecting you to be waiting."

At that, Elsa sweeps her eyes off the floor, disbelief playing across her face. "After all this time, you still don't think I'll be waiting for you?"

Anna grimaces, choosing to stay silent. Elsa has  _always_  been waiting for her, ever since that first full moon. Apparently all she can do is continue to say the wrong things, do the wrong things.

"God this is painful," Jack drawls. Anna had almost forgotten he was still here, and now he's looking at her like she's the saddest thing he's ever seen. He tilts his head towards Elsa and says decisively, "We're not going to the forest today."

Elsa's brow furrows in dismay. "We're not?" She sounds so tired and defeated, the news coming as another blow to her already crappy day.

"No." Jack makes a sudden gesture towards the floor, hands splayed as frost erupts from his fingertips. Anna follows the snowflakes in awe before realizing what is happening.

"Did you just…" Anna starts, staring down at her feet incredulously. A thick layer of ice has crawled up and over the bridge of Anna's feet and around her heels. When she tries to move, she finds that the ice keeps her firmly rooted in place "This is a flagrant abuse of your powers! Jack, can you  _not_  be an ass for once?"

As expected, Jack steadfastly ignores her. "Consider this today's lesson," he says to Elsa, a hint of a smirk on his lips. "Unmelt her if you want, or I suppose you can just leave her here. I don't really care either way."

With that, he turns on his heel and walks out the door.

They both stare after him, mouths dropped open. Anna turns her attention back to her feet and experimentally tries lifting one leg, then the other. It's useless; whatever Jack did has her practically nailed to the floor. At least the ice—for whatever magical reason—doesn't actually feel cold against her socks.

"So…" Anna starts, attempting to regain at least a little composure, "could you maybe help me out here?"

Elsa stares blankly down at Anna's feet. "I don't think I know how," she says slowly, a hand coming up to rub anxiously at her neck. "I've never tried to  _melt_  ice before."

"Crap." Anna bends down and swipes a tentative finger across the surface of the ice. It's not even wet, meaning it probably won't melt as quickly as normal ice. She could be here for hours. "Could you at least try?"

But Elsa just shakes her head. "I don't want to make it worse," she whispers, arms wrapping around her midsection in a painfully familiar stance.

Anna knows better than to try pressuring her into using her powers, and so she sighs and accepts her fate. "Well...I'll just be here...chilling out." She really feels like laughing—loud, ugly, hysterical laughs that will probably end in tears. This whole situation is so fucking ridiculous that it's really all she can do to chuckle helplessly for a moment.

The sound draws Elsa's attention and she looks up at Anna for a moment before turning and walking away.  _That_  kind of hurts, though she doesn't call out to the other woman.  _I deserve to wait this stupid thing out on my own, don't I?_

Surprising Anna, Elsa comes back only a few moments later, a woven blanket in her hands. "You must be cold," she explains, coming unexpectedly close to wrap the blanket around Anna's shoulders before stepping back.

"Almost always," Anna says faintly. She clutches the blanket tightly, wishing she could disappear into it. "Thanks."

Elsa expels a tired breath. "We need to talk, Anna," her voice is just as quiet, but there's an unexpected firmness underlining the words.

Anna bites the inside of her lip, stopping herself from giving a knee-jerk refusal. In the past, she was never one to avoid conversations or run away from her issues. This person she's become—this self-loathing, cowardly wreck—she doesn't like her.

So she takes a deep breath, trying to settle her heart. "Y-yeah...we probably should."

Her agreement clearly catches Elsa off guard, but she doesn't let it deter her. "Alright..." she says, sounding self-assured despite the fact her fingers are worrying at her sweater, "Then I want to know what happened last night."

"Last night?" Anna repeats. When Elsa just continues to look at her, she nods. "Right, last night. We uhh...we kissed."  _Quite a lot, just a few feet from here_.

Elsa seems pleased that Anna's not trying to skirt around the topic. "And afterwards...I couldn't sleep. I couldn't stop thinking about it." They both blush at that admission, but Elsa's delicate eyebrows are quick to scrunch together as if she's working on a particularly difficult problem. "I couldn't stop thinking about it because  _you_  kissed me."

"What?" Anna instinctively tries to move back and ends up dropping the blanket and windmilling her arms, fighting for balance as her feet remain frozen in place.

Elsa steps forward, grasping her forearms and holding her steady. "You kissed me," Elsa says again, strong and sure. The statement seems to loosen something inside her, and she continues, "I wasn't the only one who made a decision last night. You didn't have a drop to drink, and yet you kissed  _me_." She pauses, letting go of Anna's arms before asking, "Do you like me, Anna? As more than a friend?"

Anna closes her eyes, because expecting the question is nowhere near the same as actually  _hearing_  it. But she doesn't want to hide from her feelings anymore, not when they can hurt Elsa even more than herself.

"I do," she breathes, and a small weight lifts off her chest. She opens her eyes, sees how wide Elsa's blue ones are with that admission. "I really do."

A small smile begins to form on Elsa's lips before she smothers it, not wanting to start hoping yet. "Then why did you push me away like that?"

"I…" Despite wanting to be honest, it's still hard to open up completely, to expose herself like this. "You deserve someone better than me," she finally whispers, because it's true.

Elsa throws her a sharp look, disagreement written all over her face. "I'm not a saint, Anna," she states evenly. "Please don't tell me who I do or don't deserve."

Anna continues doggedly, "I lied to you before, kept things from you—"

"Because you had to!" Elsa exclaims. "I'm not holding that against you at all. I've wanted to be with you since the first moment I saw you. You're brave and sweet and so, so beautiful. If you like me, then why are you acting like this?"

Anna feels hot tears prickling at her eyes. "I've lost nearly everyone I've ever cared about. If that happens again..." Her voice breaks and she averts her gaze from Elsa, ashamed that she's about to cry. "I can't lose anyone else. I just  _can't_."

This… _this_  is the real reason for her hesitance, for her impulse to be 'push' instead of 'try'. For her to protect herself at the cost of her happiness and Elsa's. A small sound crawls out of her throat; a half-choked sob that has Anna wanting to hide herself away.

And just like that, Elsa closes the distance between them, arms encircling Anna's shoulders, and fingers rubbing across the back of her shirt in slow, soothing circles. Anna stays stock still for a moment before relaxing into the embrace, resting her head against Elsa's collarbone.

She feels Elsa's chin settling against her shoulder, smells floral shampoo where Elsa's hair tickles her nose. "You're not going to lose me," Elsa says softly, her hold tightening. Heat emanates from Elsa's face and there's a shaky exhale against her ear. "I...I'm yours, Anna."

Anna's breath catches in her throat, and she hugs Elsa back just as fiercely. "I've been such a shit to you," she says against Elsa's neck, and goosebumps ripple across the smooth skin in response, "You've been nothing but amazing even when I keep messing things up. You really do deserve someone better."

Elsa sighs and takes a step back, and Anna instantly misses her touch. "Maybe I don't want someone better," she says with a timid smile, "maybe I just want you."

Anna smiles back, small and hesitant. "Jeez, thanks for the vote of confidence," she replies with a sniffle, trying to sound like her usual self.

There's still so many variables to account for, so many uncertainties—the most important being what Jack told her. If she commits to whatever this might become, she'll be responsible for Elsa's wellbeing in a way no twenty-one year old should be. It's not that she doesn't care about Elsa, it's just not  _love_.

But...does it have the  _potential_ to be?

It's a question she's never entertained since she chose instead to write off any possible relationship with her that wasn't platonic. Though the situation  _has_ changed now, and the question is one that needs to be asked.

The answer is such an easy, resounding  _yes_  that it actually knocks the wind out of her. For a moment, she has to focus all her energy on forcing air back into her lungs. Everything that makes Elsa  _Elsa_  is worthy of love. She's so incredibly kind and smart and protective...it's really no wonder Anna fell for her despite never really seeing women that way.

So she might not love Elsa yet, because all of this is too new and overwhelming as it is, but the possibility is worth taking a chance on.

"Are you alright?" Elsa asks, concerned. "You're really pale."

The words bring Anna back to reality, and she blinks a few times. "I...yeah," she sounds as dazed as if she took a blow to the head. Elsa doesn't look at all convinced, which gives Anna the extra push she needs. "I just realized that I think I'm ready to be with you," she declares, a smile of pure elation taking over her face, "As more than friends, as whatever you want."

Elsa stays right where she is, but a light breeze flutters through the apartment, ruffling Anna's hair. Small snowflakes begin to descend from the ceiling, clinging to everything in their path. Instinctively, Anna reaches out to touch one as it floats in front of her. Instead of melting, it stays firmly on her finger; a beautiful, intricate fractal.

Anna swallows hard, her smile fading. "Are you alright?" she echoes Elsa's earlier question, trying not to be alarmed. The only times Elsa's powers have ever appeared like this have been in stressful situations, and if Anna is somehow making Elsa feel awful—

"I-I'm fine," Elsa finally says, shakily. Her eyes are bright and she's no longer suppressing the hope Anna had previously seen. Instead it burns brightly, positively lighting her up from the inside. "I'm just...I'm so  _happy_  right now."

Anna stretches her hand out in a silent invitation. Elsa takes it, fingers threading through hers. "I have a lot to make up for," Anna starts, momentarily grimacing, "I'm sorry I hurt you by acting so immaturely."

With her free hand, Elsa cups Anna's cheek, wiping away an errant snowflake. Anna leans into the touch, content. "It's my turn to ask now," Anna continues softly, lips nearly brushing against the inside of Elsa's wrist. "Can I kiss you?"

Elsa's response is immediate—cool lips are pressed against her own before she can even close her eyes. Elsa moves her hands away from Anna's face and around her lower back, pulling her impossibly close. Anna sighs at the contact, her own hands trailing up and looping around Elsa's shoulders.

Lips part beneath hers, and Anna wastes no time running her tongue between them, eliciting a shiver—a  _good_  shiver—from the other woman. Even amidst the light snowfall, Anna feels something warm and wet against the heated skin of her cheek, and she opens her eyes to see tears trickling down Elsa's face.

"Hey," she murmurs, breaking the kiss. She moves her lips to each of Elsa's cheekbones, kissing away the tears, and wiping the skin dry with her thumbs. "It's okay, it's okay…"

Elsa leans back slightly so their foreheads are pressed together. Inhaling deeply, she takes in Anna's scent, takes in this new step of their relationship. "This is the first time I've ever done this," she confesses lowly, blue eyes achingly vulnerable, "I've never...been with anyone before."

Anna presses a light kiss to the tip of her nose. "And this is the first time I've been with another girl before, so I guess that makes us even." Elsa smiles plaintively at that, and Anna feels the need to further assure her, "I'm not going to pressure you into anything. We can take this as slow as you want."

A huff of cool breath fans across her face. "I don't want to go slow," Elsa says impulsively. The immediate response has her blushing a brilliant pink, but she doesn't take the words back.

Anna grins and swoops in for another quick kiss. "You're going to be the death of me, you know."

Elsa's hands tighten around her hips. "Don't even say that," she murmurs, closing in to lean her head against Anna's shoulder.

They're silent for a long moment, simply holding each other as snow continues to fall around them.

After a while, an interruption comes from an unexpected place—Elsa's stomach makes a strange sort of gurgling noise, and Anna giggles against white-blonde hair. "Hungry?" she asks playfully.

Elsa reluctantly pulls back, glaring down at her stomach. "I haven't eaten anything yet," she confesses, "I didn't have much of an appetite since last night..." She clears her throat, waving away the apology already forming on Anna's lips. "I'm fine now, really. But we probably should have some food. I can heat up some leftovers if you want."

Elsa pads towards the kitchen, turning only when she realizes Anna isn't following her. "Oh, you go right ahead," Anna says encouragingly, waving her forward.

"You're not coming?" Elsa asks, raising an eyebrow in puzzlement.

"Well, I  _would_ ," Anna answers as patiently as she can, drawling out the word, "but I'm kind of stuck to the floor."

Elsa's eyes trail down to her feet and they widen upon seeing the ice still holding Anna firmly in place. "Oh my god," she says, another blush coming across her face. "Oh  _no_. I completely forgot."

Anna bursts into laughter, and Elsa is soon behind, the jubilant sounds echoing through the apartment.

* * *

It takes both of their hairdryers on full blast for the ice to start melting. They both kneel down, directing the blowers directly onto the cold, shiny surface. "Really, what was Jack  _thinking_?" Elsa mutters to herself, trying to find a comfortable position.

Anna remains silent, though she has a pretty good idea of what Jack wanted out of this. He was providing her a chance to fix what she very nearly broke with Elsa. She just wishes he could have done it in a less annoying fashion.

She tests the thickness of the ice, leaning her weight on one foot while trying to lift the other. The action fails to free her, and instead makes her lose her balance and topple towards Elsa. Elsa immediately drops her dryer to reach out and steady her.

Anna smiles gratefully, putting her own dryer on the floor and tugging Elsa closer by the front of her shirt. "My savior," she says teasingly, bringing her in for a kiss.

The enthusiasm she's greeted with just makes her smile harder, until she can't properly kiss Elsa. The other woman soon turns her attention to Anna's neck since her lips are being uncooperative. Anna's smile abruptly disappears when Elsa finds a particularly sensitive spot at the base of her neck.

"O-oh…" Anna stutters, tilting her head to give Elsa more access. Encouraged, Elsa slowly runs her tongue over the spot before gently setting her teeth to the skin. A pleasant shiver courses down Anna's spine, and she can't stop a small moan from escaping. Elsa continues her ministrations with obvious delight, moving to the other side of her neck.

Which is the exact moment Anna yelps and jerks away.

Elsa stands up immediately, flushed and anxious. "What is it?"

"I think I'm free now." Anna turns off the hairdryers, which had steadily been melting through the ice while she and Elsa were occupied. She tugs fiercely at one of her feet until it's finally out of its icy prison. Not wasting any time, she peels her sock off, revealing red, angry-looking skin around her ankle bone. "Aaand I think the hairdryer burnt my foot," she says, only a little sheepish. After all, it wasn't solely  _her_  fault that she was distracted.

Elsa furrows her brow, but relaxes when she realizes Anna's not truly hurt. "Do you want me to—"

Anna shakes her head and pulls on her other foot until it's free and she's able to walk like a normal person once more. "There's no need, it'll heal on its own. Are you still hungry?"

"Starving," Elsa responds with a warm smile.

While she sets herself to warming up some leftover Chinese, Anna snatches a few cups out of the cupboard, and then some forks and spoons out of the drawer. Swinging into the seat she's unofficially labelled as hers, she watches Elsa, lost in thought.

It will definitely be a strange transition—roommates to friends to...girlfriends. The word feels foreign and she's tempted to say it out loud, see how it sounds out in the open. Thankfully, she does have some self-control, because Elsa would probably fix her with one of those judgmental stares—

Like the one she's giving her now.

Elsa waves a hand in front of Anna's face, trying to gain her attention. "The food's ready."

"Ah, right. Food." Anna answers eloquently, shaking herself out of her reverie. "Sorry, I was thinking about...us, actually."

"Oh?" Elsa queries, busying herself with scooping some lo mein out of a container. Trying to sound casual, she continues, "What exactly were you thinking?"

"You know," Anna hauls herself out of her seat so she can get the last of the orange chicken before Elsa. "Just wondering how this will work. I mean, we already live together. That changes things a bit, doesn't it?"

Elsa, finished serving herself, takes over Anna's seat as payback for the orange chicken. "I've also seen you after you've nearly died on multiple occasions," she points out, "and you've seen me make snow and ice. This never really had a chance at being a normal...relationship." There's a pause before she says the last word, as if savoring the syllables on her tongue.

"You're right," Anna agrees with a dramatic sigh, returning to the table and digging in. "We're doomed."

Elsa huffs irritably and nudges Anna's shin with her foot. "That's not what I meant! We'll just...have to be careful." Some of her playfulness fades with that, and she stares down at her food, worry setting heavily on her shoulders.

Anna's fork scrapes loudly against the bottom of her plate, eliciting a cringe. The sound brings her back into Elsa's focus and Anna smiles weakly at her, knowing what she was probably thinking about. "Do we have anything due for Weselton tomorrow?" she asks instead, not wanting Elsa to dwell on any dark thoughts.

"We have the paper on revolutionary processes," Elsa answers immediately. Seemingly pushing away her worries, she rests her chin against her hand and fixes Anna with a knowing stare. "Have you even started it?"

"Yes!" Anna exclaims, feeling the need to defend herself. "I've gotten like...two paragraphs done. I  _would've_  gotten more done if—" she clamps down on the rest of the sentence, not wanting to dig herself into a hole.

Elsa leans forward, interest shining in those impossibly beautiful eyes. "If what?"

"Urrgh…" Anna takes another bite of food before answering, "I would've gotten more done if you weren't studying with me." The answer takes Elsa by surprise, and a pleased smile comes onto her face. Anna continues to grumble, "Yeah, you kept distracting me with your…'you'-ness."

"In that case, I apologize," Elsa says, through her expression is completely unapologetic. "I guess we'll have to call it even; you've distracted me plenty of times."

"Oh, really?" Anna scoffs good-naturedly, curious despite herself.

Elsa cants her head to the left, running her fingers through blonde locks and sweeping them to the side, exposing a cute ear and a long segment of neck. Anna follows the action with rapt attention, comforted in the knowledge that it's okay to admire her so openly now.

"You do this kind of thing all the time," Elsa says, regaining her attention, "pull your hair to one side, trail a hand down your neck…" She pauses to do exactly this before lightly pressing her fingers into the muscles under her ear, a soft moan passing through her lips. "And you make these sounds that make me want to...take a very cold shower."

"I won't apologize for my stiff neck," Anna mumbles, uncomfortably warm. "But I see your point."

Elsa smirks, victorious. "I suppose I just have more experience when it comes to staying focused."

"Hmm," Anna says, trying to come off as thoughtful. In reality, she's wondering just how Elsa is so comfortable being such a tease. Being in the kitchen also brings back memories of last night, of how Elsa had  _lifted her onto the counter_  to keep kissing her. She's certainly much more at ease with showing affection than Anna would have assumed. Maybe it's an ice fae thing.

Anna drags herself back to a reality that sees her writing a crappy paper the rest of the day. "I probably should get to typing," she says reluctantly, polishing her noodles off and taking her plate to the sink. "I don't think my grade can take another hit."

It's no secret that Weselton's class is her least favorite of the semester—hell, maybe her least favorite  _ever_ —and with the way the professor glares at her during every lecture, she'll need to work extra hard to make sure he has no reason to fail her.

"You'll be in your room?" Elsa asks, cleaning up as well.

"Yep." The library was simply too far away for her to bother; it'd be enough of an effort just to clear space on her desk. She pauses for a moment, then adds, "You can hang out in there too, if you want. You probably have all of your homework done, but there's still a ton of bestiaries and stuff to read through."

Elsa beams, the action sending a warm, pleasant jolt through Anna's chest. "I'd love that. Let me just get some things from my room." Maybe it'd be clichéd to say there was more pep in Elsa's step than usual, but it'd also be completely true.

Anna finds that her own footsteps are light as she heads to her room, and when a now-familiar shiver passes through her, she can't be bothered to care.

* * *

Miraculously, she manages to finish her paper  _before_  sunrise, though her vision starts blurring by the time she reaches the concluding paragraph. Now, she's not going to say it's a masterpiece by any means, but it's finished and that's what counts. The fact that Elsa was on the floor, not directly facing her, definitely helped her concentration. Only seeing her in profile, studying the various books around her, had motivated Anna to chip away at her own work.

When she's done looking over it one last time, Anna raises her arms in victory, stretching this way and that. Noticing Elsa's eyes on her, Anna makes sure to go through the motions of rubbing her neck and groaning in satisfaction.

Elsa very pointedly turns back to her book, and Anna grins. "I think I'm going to bed soon. Did you want to join me?" The words leave before they could even pass through her filter, and Elsa nearly drops the book in her hands.

"W-what?"

Anna frantically waves her hands, cheeks flaring. " _Ohmygod_  I didn't mean it like that! Not like I wouldn't want to eventually because, you know. But that's like, in the future. Someday other than today, I mean. Because we haven't really gotten anywhere near that point yet, though at the rate we're going—holy crap, actually maybe you should leave before I say anything else super embarrassing—"

Elsa stands up and places a finger over Anna's mouth, stopping the flow of words bubbling out of her. "If you meant to ask if I wanted to stay here and  _sleep_ , then…" She replaces her finger with her lips, giving Anna a quick, calming kiss. "I'd like that."

Anna's forehead thumps against Elsa's shoulder, her cheeks reddening further. "Me too."

Hopefully her word vomit will cease in the coming weeks, but she'll probably mortify herself several times before then. She wasn't even thinking of asking Elsa to share her bed, but somehow the words just came out. Though now that it's actually  _happening_ , she's certainly not going to complain.

They stay like that for a moment, with Elsa cradling Anna's head and rubbing her thumb across the freckled skin of her cheek. "You should know that I sort of...cling...in my sleep."

Anna snorts, breaking away from Elsa to crawl into bed and pull the covers down for her. "I already know that. You were very clingy last time."

"Oh, yeah?" Elsa says, obediently slipping under the covers next to her. "You didn't say anything."

"That's because it took me by surprise," Anna admits as she turns her lamp off and lays back down. She positions herself on her side, peering at Elsa's dark outline. "I kind of...realized my feelings when you were sleeping here."

Elsa stills at that, not even appearing to breathe. "Is that so?" she finally murmurs.

Not knowing what to do, Anna simply nods. "It took me a while to figure it out. I mean, I think I liked you earlier than that, but that was the first time it was undeniable. So I'm kinda glad you cling in your sleep." The words seem to flow easier when she can't fully see Elsa's reaction to them.

Elsa doesn't respond, leaving Anna to wonder if she said something weird. She turns onto her back, hands splayed out across her stomach. The mattress dips beside her, and Elsa is suddenly  _there_ , one of her arms snaking around Anna's waist and drawing her close. The scent of minty toothpaste fills her nose, and she feels Elsa's steady breathing next to her ear.

Maybe it's odd that they're already so casual with their touches, that it feels  _natural_  for them to be holding each other like this, but Anna can't be bothered to care. All she knows is that it took  _way_  too long to allow herself to come to this point, and now that Elsa's here, in her arms, she's not going to let go of her.

"The first time I saw you, you were wearing that green-and-black flannel," Elsa starts, whispering the words into the crook of Anna's neck. "Kristoff was with you, and you were laughing at something he said. That laugh...it was so bright and  _happy_ , so contagious that it made me smile. My first thought was, 'I want to make her laugh like that someday'." She shifts, pressing a soft kiss to the skin below her.

"That was the first day of class. I thought it was just a passing attraction, though I had never felt so strongly about someone I didn't even know. I accidentally let it slip to Rapunzel, who of course made fun of me mercilessly. She was always saying I should talk to you, but...I never knew what I would say. Besides, I thought you were with Kristoff.

"The last thing I expected was for us to be  _roommates_  and it made everything so much harder at first. I used to think I had good control over my powers, though around you I kept slipping up. But even if it was difficult, I was able to learn more about you. You always came home late at night, bleeding and in pain, but in the morning you'd act like nothing happened. You love Taylor Swift and weird eighties movies, and always try to include me in whatever you're doing. And…"

Elsa's breath is shaky and she tightens her grip on the edge of Anna's shirt. "You accepted me without question. When I told you I was gay, it didn't change how you thought of me. When you found out I had  _ice powers_...you didn't even blink. Nothing changed, which changed  _everything_  for me. I'm so happy that I know you, and that we don't have to hide our true selves from each other."

"Yeah, you know," Anna says, voice thick and on the verge of breaking. "Same here." She sneaks her hand around Elsa to draw her even closer, until Elsa is partly on top of her. "I'm just glad that I somehow caught your eye."

She remembers the first day of Weselton's class, her and Kristoff elbowing each other until Weselton reprimanded them, and then silently snickering behind his back. She...didn't even notice anyone else that day. Even if she was under threat of death, she  _still_  wouldn't be able to remember anyone else in the class.

A niggling sense of guilt courses through her, but she pushes it away. After all, they're here now,  _together_. As Elsa nestles further into her and her breathing starts to even out, Anna stares up at the ceiling with a faint smile.

This morning, it seemed like everything was going to hell. Who would've thought they would end up like this tonight, curled up like a couple of kittens?

She closes her eyes, content for the first time in weeks.

* * *

A searing cold pain rips through Anna's skull, and she bolts up, gasping. She takes one labored breath, and then another, hands gripping tightly at the sides of her skull.

"What's going on?" Elsa is instantly awake, barely a trace of drowsiness in her voice. "Is it another nightmare?"

"No, I...ahh, I don't kn-know!" Anna says through chattering teeth, trying not to panic as wave after wave of ice crashes against her chest, flowing through her extremities. She starts trembling uncontrollably, knotting her hands into Elsa's shirt until the fabric sounds like it's about to rip. Elsa holds her tightly, riding out the pain with her.

After a few minutes, the shiver ebb away, leaving Anna weak and clammy. "I...think it's over," she pants, rubbing at her chest. It feels like someone hollowed out her heart with a melon baller.

Elsa smooths the sweaty bangs away from Anna's face. "Has that ever happened before?" she asks, supporting her almost-limp body in her arms.

Anna shakes her head, the effort causing her to wince as her vision goes blurry for a second. "I don't know what just happened."

As Elsa reaches blindly for the light and switches it on, she asks, "Do you want me to get you some water and—" Her hold on Anna loosens and she stares at her in shock, forgetting what she was about to say next.

"What?" Anna says, dread welling up in her chest. "What is it?" She feels around her face, but there's no blood or anything to evoke such a response.

Silently, Elsa reaches for her phone and flicks on the forward-facing camera. Anna peers into screen and nearly drops the device in surprise. "What the  _fuck_  is that?!"

She tugs at her now white-blonde bangs, moving them this way and that. She looks to Elsa for an explanation, but the other woman just shrugs helplessly. "I think you should call Jack," she whispers, rubbing the back of Anna's neck in a calming manner. "He can fix...whatever  _this_  is, right?"

"Right," Anna murmurs, her mind racing. She doesn't know what this is, but she's really hoping Jack can help.

She steadies herself before scrolling through the contacts on Elsa's phone and choosing Jack's number. The phone rings for what seems like an eternity until he finally picks up. "What?" he answers groggily.

"H-hey, Jack. It's Anna."  _Stay calm, just stay calm for a little longer_. Beside her, Elsa's biting at her bottom lip and Anna reaches out to squeeze her hand. "Something's happened to me."

Jack yawns, the sound rankling Anna. "Go on," he prompts her sleepily.

"I...I kind of look like an X-Men character?" Anna responds, trying to lighten the mood. "You know, the one with the white streak in her hair. Does that mean anything to you?"

There's a loud banging sound on the other end of the line, followed by a string of muttered curses. "White, you say? How are you feeling?" Jack asks, clearly awake now.

"I'm okay. Just a little nervous, I guess. I mean, I go to sleep with normal hair and wake up with  _this_. It's probably not the worst looking thing in the world but I still want my hair back to before—" Anna stops babbling when Elsa gently squeezes her hand in a silent 'be quiet' gesture.

Jack makes an impatient sound. "No, how are you  _physically_? Have you noticed anything odd recently?"

"Well, I…" Anna hesitates, because the answer is what she's been putting off—flat out  _ignoring_ —for weeks now. "I've been cold, my heart...it feels like it's freezing sometimes," she whispers, squeezing her eyes shut. "Just now, I woke up and couldn't stop shaking. And...and I think I've been losing some of the feeling in my limbs." Fuck, saying all this aloud makes her realize that she should have gone to a Guild doctor _way_ sooner.

Elsa's grip on her hand is now painfully tight, forcing her to open her eyes. Elsa is white as a sheet, alarm and something like  _betrayal_  crossing her face at not being told about this.

"When did you start noticing the cold?" Jack says, the sound of running water filtering in from the background.

"Maybe since…I think it was the shifter fight," Anna says uncertainly, because shifters definitely can't do anything like this. Unless it wasn't the shifter...Unless—

No.

 _No_.

This has nothing to do with Elsa, it  _can't_  have anything to do with her.

Jack is silent for so long that Anna contemplates hanging up and redialing. "Meet at mine, I'll unlock the door. Don't bring Elsa," he finally says, voice clipped.

Anna furrows her eyebrows, glancing up at the woman in question. "Jack, what is it?" she asks, voice small and sounding like a scared child. "What's wrong with me?"

A harsh exhale travels through the phone, and she can imagine Jack running a hand through his hair. His next words have her dropping the phone and backing against the wall, breaking Elsa's hold to clutch at her head, fingers weaving through red-and-white strands. She can't hear whatever Elsa is saying to her, only Jack's words, looping over and over.

" _I think you might be dying_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fittingly, the next chapter will be called 'Blood Runs Cold'. As always, TheWanderingQuill is the best beta in the world <3\. Let me know what you guys think, though I'm sure there will be lots of yelling involved.


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